The calculator and the quote form below are in Dutch. Prefer to do this in English? Email info@finassverzekert. nl or call 072 - 509 24 56 and we will take it from there.
Work out for yourself what it would cost.
Enter your details; you will receive a proposal within one working day.
We compare the offerings of several insurers
An adviser checks whether the cover suits your activities
A premium indication, not personal advice. Prefer to talk it through? Call 072 - 509 24 56.
In brief
The business contents of a hotel is dispersed property: beds, wardrobes, televisions, safes and lighting in each room, the bathroom finishes you had installed yourself, plus reception, breakfast room, kitchen and any wellness area. The goods cover the food and drink stock and the linen. Together that is a large item made up of many small, identical parts.
That dispersed character makes water the decisive risk. A burst pipe, an overflowing bath or a leaking sprinkler head on the fourth floor damages not one room but the column below it, including ceilings, floor coverings and electrics. Insurers also set requirements for a fire detection system with remote signalling, for compartmentation per floor and for clear escape routes; those requirements appear as a clause on the policy.
Guests' property falls outside this insurance: suitcases, laptops and jewellery in the room safe are not your property. Also excluded remain: gradual leakage and water penetrating through walls, wear and tear of linen, mattresses and floor coverings, and money in the reception till. No more than the actual loss is paid; that is the indemnity rule in Article 7:960 of the Dutch Civil Code.
What does business contents insurance cover for hotels?
The structure of the cover in three parts, with an overview per situation below.
Your business assets
Business contents
Machinery, equipment, furniture and fixed fittings.
At replacement value as new
Fire, water and burglary
Tenant's improvements separately
Stock
Goods
Trading stock, raw materials and finished products.
Purchase value or cost price
Declare seasonal peaks
Spoilage as an extension
Optional
Extensions
What is excluded as standard.
Third-party property
Money and securities
Business interruption
What is covered
Situation
Business contents
Goods
Fire and smoke damage
Yes
Yes
Burglary with signs of forced entry
Yes
Yes
Water damage from a burst pipe
Yes
Yes
Customers' property being worked on
No
No
Spoilage due to refrigeration failure
Sometimes
Sometimes
Wear and deferred maintenance
No
No
This overview is general in nature and is not personal advice. What is actually covered, including exclusions, limits and the excess, is set out in the policy conditions and the insurance card (verzekeringskaart) of the insurer; you receive both before you take out cover. Taking out cover without advice? Then read what execution only means for you.
Where things go wrong in practice
Four points that make the difference between a policy that pays out and one that does not.
Water goes downwards
In a hotel there is a water pipe behind every room wall and a bathroom floor above every ceiling. The damage from a burst pipe therefore rarely stops at one room. Sudden leakage is covered, but gradual seepage and a slowly dripping joint are not. Also watch out for frost: pipes in unused room wings or in a seasonal building must be drained, and that often appears as a condition on the policy.
The fire detection system and what follows from it
For buildings where people sleep, insurers almost always require a fire detection system with remote signalling, a valid maintenance contract and demonstrably clear escape routes. Those requirements are not a formality: they form the clause that is turned to first after a fire. A blocked emergency exit or a disabled detector can be treated as material fault, with the consequences that Article 7:952 of the Dutch Civil Code attaches to it.
What guests bring with them is not your business contents
Suitcases, laptops, jewellery and the contents of the room safe are your guests' property. Your property insurance pays nothing for them, not even after an insured fire. If a guest holds you liable for loss or damage, that is a matter for your liability insurance, where items in your care are a point to watch. So set your terms for safekeeping expressly.
What is not included
Outside the cover remain wear and tear of mattresses, linen and floor coverings, gradual damp damage, money in the reception till and damage a guest causes in his room without unlawful entry. The turnover you lose while rooms are out of service does not fall under this either; for that a business interruption insurance is needed with a sufficiently long indemnity period.
What does your premium depend on?
Number of rooms and floors. Property spread over several storeys weighs differently from the same value in one space.
Construction type and compartmentation. The fire separation between rooms, corridors and floors determines the size of a loss.
Fire detection system and maintenance. Remote signalling to a monitoring centre and a current maintenance contract are often a condition of acceptance.
Presence of a kitchen, wellness area or pool. A cooking line, sauna or swimming pool adds its own fire and water risk.
Seasonal pattern and vacancy. Periods in which wings or the whole building are unused call for extra measures.
Business interruption and excess. The indemnity period chosen for loss of turnover and the excess per event.
Insurers weigh these details differently. That is where your saving is.
How we arrange it
You request a quoteWe take stock of your situation, your risk and your wishes.
We compareseveral insurers, on premium as well as conditions.
You receive a proposalWith an explanation of the differences and the exclusions.
We arrange the switchIncluding cancellation, so there is no gap in cover.
Customers rate our service on four aspects: personal service, service delivery, availability and the outcome. The reviews are collected and published by NH1816 and come from customers who have actually taken out a policy with Finass Advies B.V. or reported a claim.
No. Business contents insurance covers your own business assets and stock. Guests' possessions are not, even when they are in a room safe or in your luggage store. If a guest claims against you for loss or damage, that runs through your liability insurance. Set out in your house rules what you do and do not take into safekeeping, and on what terms.
A guest let the bath overflow. Is that covered?
Water damage from a sudden cause is usually covered, even if a guest left the tap running. The follow-up question is who ultimately bears the cost: your insurer can recover the loss from the person responsible under Article 6:162 of the Dutch Civil Code. Gradually seeping damp or a drain that had been leaking for some time falls outside the cover, regardless of who was using the room.
What if rooms cannot be let after a loss?
Property insurance pays for repair or replacement of the business contents, not the nights you cannot sell. That loss of turnover falls under business interruption. Choose an indemnity period that matches the real repair time for a hotel: structural repairs, permits and the delivery time for room furnishings usually make that period longer than owners estimate in advance.
Are there requirements for the fire detection system?
Almost always. For buildings where people sleep, insurers require a fire detection system with remote signalling, periodic maintenance by an approved firm and demonstrably clear escape routes. Those requirements appear as a clause on the policy. Keep maintenance reports and logbooks: after a fire that is the first thing requested, and without those documents argument arises about the payment.
Finass Verzekert is a trading name of Finass Advies B.V. We advise on and arrange non-life insurance on the basis of an objective analysis of several insurers, and receive commission for this from the insurer, which is included in the premium. You pay no separate advice fee. Before you take out cover, we establish your wishes and needs.
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