Liability
- Damage to third parties
- Employers' liability
- Care, custody and control as an extension
Professional errors · scope · run-off
Insurance for design and development
In design and development the loss is financial, nothing is broken, and the claim often arrives years after the work: three features that entirely determine the form of the policy.
- several insurers compared objectively
- 9.5 customer rating for a new policy
- AFM licence 12016589
- Personal 072 - 509 24 56, weekdays 9–17
This page in another language: Nederlands · Deutsch
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
- We arrange the switch, including cancellation
A premium indication, not personal advice. Prefer to talk it through? Call 072 - 509 24 56.
In brief
A design error damages nothing. A wrongly calculated structure, a software module that produces the wrong result, a specification that does not meet the standard or a product design that turns out to be unmakeable in production costs the client money: redesign, delay, downtime, extra materials. That is pure financial loss and it is excluded on public and employers' liability insurance. Your policy is professional indemnity insurance.
That works on a claims madebasis: what is covered is the claim that reaches you during the term and that you notify, not the mistake you made during the term. For designers that is crucial, because a mistake usually only becomes visible at construction, completion or first use. Sometimes years later. Two concepts then determine whether there is cover: prior acts cover for work from before the start date, and run-off cover for claims arriving after the policy has ended, for instance on closing the business or retiring.
What the policy does not do is redo your own work. The cost of putting right or re-delivering your design is excluded. The policy pays for the other party's loss, not for your performance. If there is also physical damage to the works during construction, that belongs with a Construction all risks (CAR) insurance. Rights in what you design are dealt with at trade mark rights and intellectual property.
Insurance that matches your sector
Every sector carries its own risks. We translate those into cover that genuinely fits what you do day to day, rather than a standard package that just happens to apply to your business too.
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What does insurance for design and development cover?
The structure of the cover in three parts, with an overview per situation below.
Assets and continuity
Business contents, goods and lost turnover during downtime.
- Business contents at replacement value as new
- Goods at cost price
- Business interruption or additional costs
Staff
Sickness absence, accidents and the traffic risk.
- Continued pay for 104 weeks
- Group personal accident
- WEGAS for traffic risks
What is covered
| Situation | AVB | BAV | Cyber |
|---|---|---|---|
| Injury to a visitor or customer | Yes | No | No |
| Damage to a client's property | Sometimes | No | No |
| Financial loss caused by an advisory or calculation error | No | Yes | No |
| Downtime after a ransomware attack | No | No | Yes |
| Data breach involving personal data | No | Sometimes | Yes |
| Damage to property in your care | No | 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.
Define the scope before you start
Most disputes arise not from a calculation error but because the brief and the expectation diverge. Set out in writing what does and does not fall within the brief, on which assumptions, standard versions and supplied data you are relying, and who is responsible for checking them. Have extra work signed off before the work is carried out. When a claim arrives, this file is the first thing your insurer asks for, before the technical evidence.
Retroactive and run-off cover determine whether you are really covered
If you move to another insurer, without retroactive cover you are not insured for mistakes from your earlier years, while those are precisely the claims coming in now. If you close your business, claims about your last projects only arrive after termination; without run-off period you then stand alone. Arrange both when you take out the policy and not when you cancel; buying afterwards is expensive and sometimes impossible.
Putting your own work right is excluded
Every professional indemnity policy excludes the cost of redoing, improving or completing your own performance, including the fee you have to repay or may not invoice. What is insured is the consequential loss suffered by the client: the extra construction costs, the delay, the work that has to be demolished. Contractual penalties for late completion and warranty obligations going further than liability under the law also fall outside the cover.
Report as soon as you see a claim coming
Article 7:941 of the Dutch Civil Code requires you to report a materialisation of the risk as soon as possible, and on a claims made basis you also run the risk of the notification period expiring. So do not wait until a writ arrives: an email in which a client holds you liable is already a circumstance. Do not admit liability and do not promise to put things right; under Article 7:952 DCC deliberately caused loss is excluded and a premature admission can damage your insurer's position on recovery.
What does your premium depend on?
- Discipline and type of design. Structural design, building services, software development, industrial design and architecture each carry a different scale of loss per mistake.
- Project size relative to your fee. A small fee on a large project means the possible consequential loss is a multiple of what you earn; underwriters look closely at this.
- Sum insured chosen. The limit per claim and per insurance year; large clients often require by contract a higher sum than your own risk profile calls for.
- Retroactive date. The further back retroactive cover goes, the more old projects fall under the policy and the higher the premium.
- Terms and conditions and limitation of liability. If you use your own terms or industry terms with a limitation of liability, that reduces the risk and therefore the premium.
- Area of operation and applicable law. Projects with clients or applications outside Europe call for an extension, because the liability regime and legal costs are different there.
Insurers weigh these details differently. That is where your saving is.
How we arrange it
- You request a quoteWe take stock of your activities, turnover and 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.
9.5New policy
9.8Claims handling
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.
Frequently asked questions
This is what people ask us most.
Which policy covers a design error?
Professional indemnity insurance. A design error damages nothing and injures nobody. The client suffers purely financial loss and that is pure financial loss, which is excluded on public and employers' liability insurance. If you also carry out work as well as designing, you need both policies alongside each other, because when there is doubt each policy points to the other.
What does claims made mean for me?
What is covered is the claim that reaches you during the term and that you notify, not the mistake you made during the term. For work from before the start date you need retroactive cover. For claims arriving after termination, a run-off period. Arrange both when you take out the policy, because buying afterwards is expensive and not always possible.
Does the policy pay for redoing my design?
No. Putting right, improving or redoing your own performance is excluded, as is a fee you have to repay. What is insured is the consequential loss at the client: extra construction costs, work demolished and loss through delay. Contractual penalties for late completion are usually outside it.
When do I have to report a claim that is looming?
As soon as you know of a circumstance that could lead to a claim. Article 7:941 of the Dutch Civil Code requires prompt notification and on a claims made basis late notification can cost you cover. An email in which a client holds you liable is reason enough. Do not admit liability and do not promise free repair before your insurer has assessed the file.
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About our service
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.
You will find our licence, KvK and Kifid details and our complaints procedure at the foot of every page.
This page was written and checked by an adviser at Finass Verzekert. Last updated on .
The information on this page is general in nature and is not personal advice.