Combustion gases · certification · hot work
Liability insurance for a central heating firm
A central heating business works on gas, water and naked flames in occupied buildings. Two risks stand out: carbon monoxide after an incorrect flue and fire after soldering or welding work.
- Several insurers compared objectively
- 9.5 customer rating for a new policy
- AFM licence 12016589
- Personal 072 - 509 24 56, weekdays 9–17
Deze pagina in het Nederlands: Aansprakelijkheidsverzekering voor een cv-bedrijf.
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
Work on gas-fired appliances is subject to statutory certification: only certified businesses may install, maintain and commission boilers, and the engineer must be demonstrably competent. Insurers follow that. If the certificate is missing or you let an unauthorised worker sign off a boiler, you risk enforcement proceedings and a refusal of the claim as well. That is the heaviest condition on this type of policy; the rest of the structure is on the hub page public and employers' liability insurance.
The second risk is fire. Soldering, torch work and grinding in a home or business premises is the classic cause of a major fire that starts hours after you have left. Almost every liability policy has a clause for this with concrete requirements: clearing the workplace, screening off combustible material, fire-fighting equipment within reach and a check afterwards. If those are not met, cover lapses for that loss, however carefully the rest of the work was done.
There is also the everyday water damage: a joint that comes loose after filling, an expansion vessel that discharges, a pipe not drained down in frost. Damage to the customer's property is insurable, but remaking your own connection is not. For larger installation projects, a erection all risks insurance covers the works themselves during installation and testing. That policy sits alongside the liability cover and not in place of it.
This page deals with one situation. The full overview is on Compare public and employers' liability insurance (AVB).
What to look out for
Four subjects that determine cover in heating installation and maintenance work.
Carbon monoxide and the flue for combustion gases
A flue that is incorrectly connected or cracked leads to injury that is still claimed for years later. This is the heaviest injury exposure in your trade. Record for each address which measurements were taken and which defects you reported. A written warning to an occupant who has nothing put right is your most important means of defence.
The hot work clause
This provision requires you to take measures before, during and after work with naked flames. Work with press fittings rather than soldering where possible, use a hot work permit and carry out a check afterwards. After a fire, insurers ask about these points first; without records the discussion is soon over.
What is not included
Outside the cover are replacing your own defective work, the boiler or installation you have in your in your care has, fines and penalty payments, and damage caused with a service van (Article 2 of the Dutch Motor Insurance Liability Act (WAM)). Claims about a higher energy bill because of a wrongly advised system are pure financial loss and fall outside it as well.
Call-out service and working outside office hours
A 24-hour service means working under time pressure, often alone and in the dark. Declare that activity in the application. The duty of care under Article 7:658 of the Dutch Civil Code comes into play here too: working alone calls for arrangements about being contactable and for instruction on situations where an engineer has to shut off the gas supply.
What does your premium depend on?
- Annual turnover: the basis, with an adjustment at the end of the year
- Payroll: number of engineers and how they are deployed
- Share of hot work: soldering and torch work as against pressing
- Maintenance contracts: recurring responsibility per address
- Certification: demonstrable authority for work on gas installations
- Sum insured and excess: per claim and per insurance year
Insurers weigh these details differently. That is where your saving is.
What is covered
| Situation | AVB | BAV |
|---|---|---|
| An engineer leaves the filling hose running and the customer's parquet floor warps | Yes | No |
| The old boiler falls onto the neighbours' dormer while being hoisted out | Yes | No |
| An apprentice engineer hurts his back carrying a boiler upstairs | Provided that | No |
| The customer claims a higher energy bill because you advised too large a boiler | No | Yes |
| Your service van rolls off the drive into a customer's garage door | No | No |
| The client wants to be paid for pressure-testing again a pipe network you connected incorrectly | No | No |
Without valid certification for work on gas-fired appliances an insurer can refuse the claim.
Frequently asked questions
This is what people ask us most.
Is fire damage after a soldering job covered?
In principle yes, provided the hot work clause has been complied with. That requires, among other things, removing or covering combustible material, fire-fighting equipment within reach and a check afterwards. If you cannot show that, the insurer may refuse cover for that case, even where the cause is otherwise clear.
What if an occupant develops symptoms from carbon monoxide?
Personal injury to third parties is at the core of this insurance, provided you are liable under Article 6:162 of the Dutch Civil Code. The assessment turns on the condition of the flue, your test report and whether you reported defects. Report such a case straight away, even without a formal notice of liability, because investigation on site is then still possible.
Does the policy cover replacing a boiler we installed incorrectly?
No. Repairing or replacing your own supply and installation is excluded. The water damage or fire damage flowing from it can fall under the cover. For the cost of replacement you have to rely on guarantee arrangements with your supplier and on your own costings.
We also install heat pumps. Does that change the policy?
Yes. That involves work with refrigerants, for which separate certification applies, and often electrical work at the consumer unit. Declare that extension, because the capacity described limits the cover. If the work is close to that of an installation business, the description should follow that.
Read more
Within Bedrijfsaansprakelijkheidsverzekering
- Bedrijfsaansprakelijkheidsverzekeringthe main page
- Bedrijfsaansprakelijkheidsverzekering cv monteur zzp
- Bedrijfsaansprakelijkheidsverzekering loodgieter zzp
- Bedrijfsaansprakelijkheidsverzekering airco bedrijf
- Bedrijfsaansprakelijkheidsverzekering installateur zzp
- Bedrijfsaansprakelijkheidsverzekering dakdekker zzp
- Bedrijfsaansprakelijkheidsverzekering loodgietersbedrijf
Similar pages
- Liability insurance for a self-employed central heating engineer
- Liability insurance for a plumbing company
- Liability insurance for an installation engineer as a self-employed professional (zzp’er)
- Liability insurance for a self-employed roofer
- Liability insurance for a self-employed plumber
- Liability insurance for an air conditioning firm
- Liability insurance for a roofing company
- Liability insurance for a carpentry company