Surveillance · private clients · equipment
Liability insurance for a private detective
A private investigator works in public spaces, often for private individuals and against someone who knows nothing about it. That makes the method itself the greatest liability risk.
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Deze pagina in het Nederlands: Aansprakelijkheidsverzekering voor een privédetective.
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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.
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- 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
Public and employers' liability insurance (AVB) pays only for injury and property damage suffered by others. In surveillance work that is more tangible than many people think: a tracker or camera you fit that damages paintwork, a window frame or cabling, a fall from a ladder or fence, a shove during a confrontation that gets out of hand. The test remains Article 6:162 of the Dutch Civil Code: insufficient care in an act you chose to carry out yourself.
The greater exposure is that the surveillance itself may be unlawful . An intrusion into someone's private life can only be justified where there is a concrete suspicion, using the least intrusive means that will do and for as short a time as possible. Camera footage, a tracker under a car or following someone for a long period without that assessment leads to a claim in tort, coupled with a claim under Article 82 of the GDPR. That loss consists of money and harm to the person, not of injury or damaged property, and therefore falls outside the AVB; for that you need a professional indemnity insurance needed.
Two things are particular to this profession. First, the work requires a licence under the Wet particuliere beveiligingsorganisaties en recherchebureaus (the Dutch Private Security Organisations and Detective Agencies Act); if you work without that basis, there is a real risk that an insurer will refuse cover. Second, insurers assess private client work, such as investigations in the relationship sphere, more strictly than corporate investigations, because the chance of escalation is greater. Disclose that share honestly when you apply; Article 7:928 of the Dutch Civil Code requires you to give full information.
This page deals with one situation. The full overview is on Compare public and employers' liability insurance (AVB).
What to look out for
Four points that are more often decisive in surveillance work than the level of cover.
Following by car
A large part of your work takes place behind the wheel. Damage caused by a motor vehicle is excluded on the AVB and falls under the motor policy required by Article 2 of the Dutch Motor Insurance Liability Act (WAM) . If you use the car for business, tell your motor insurer; purely private cover often excludes business use.
Technical equipment on other people's property
Attaching a tracker or camera to someone else's vehicle or premises is two things at once: possibly damage to property and almost certainly an intrusion into privacy. The first may be covered, the second is not. Deliberately unlawful conduct also falls under the exclusion in Article 7:952 of the Dutch Civil Code.
What the client does with your information
If you supply information to a private individual who then approaches or puts pressure on someone, that person can hold you liable too. Record what the report is intended for, supply no more than is necessary, and turn down instructions where the purpose itself is already unlawful. That is not ethics but risk management.
Your own safety and absence from work
If you are threatened during a surveillance or suffer injury, the AVB pays nothing: it covers only other people's losses. You arrange for loss of income through absence with a disability insurance or personal accident cover. Assess for each assignment whether working alone is responsible.
What does your premium depend on?
- Annual turnover — the basis for the premium for self-employed professionals
- Share of private client work — relationship investigations are assessed more strictly
- Amount of fieldwork — surveillance carries more physical risk than desk research
- Use of cameras and tracking equipment — increases the chance of a privacy claim
- Business use of the car — must be correctly stated on the motor policy
- Sum insured and excess — per claim and per insurance year
Insurers weigh these details differently. That is why comparing pays off.
What is covered
| Situation | AVB | BAV |
|---|---|---|
| You move a planter on a walkway to get a clear view and it falls onto the car below | Yes | No |
| During a surveillance you push aside a cyclist, who falls | Provided that | No |
| An employee of your client trips over your equipment in the warehouse | Yes | No |
| A mistaken identification in your report costs the wrong employee his job | No | Yes |
| The client reclaims his investigation costs because the court set your evidence aside | No | No |
| Your camera and tracking equipment is seized during an investigation | No | No |
If the claim is about the surveillance itself rather than about damage you caused along the way, the left-hand column does not respond.
Frequently asked questions
The questions we are asked most often about this.
Someone brings proceedings because I observed him. Does my AVB pay?
No. A claim for intrusion into someone's private life is about harm to the person and about money, not about injury or damaged property. The AVB is not written for that type of loss. For this type of claim, including the costs of defending it, you need professional indemnity insurance (BAV) that expressly names surveillance in the description of your activities.
I damage a car while fitting equipment. Is that covered?
Damage to a third party's vehicle is covered in principle, but here it matters that you caused that damage in the course of an act that may itself be unlawful. If it is established that you deliberately crossed a line, Article 7:952 of the Dutch Civil Code excludes cover. The actual course of events therefore determines whether the policy comes into play at all.
May I detain someone as an investigator?
Only within the limits that apply to any citizen catching someone in the act, after which you call the police. Any step beyond that is taking the law into your own hands. If injury results, there is a good chance the insurer will rely on the intent or recklessness provision and that you will bear the compensation yourself.
Does my family's personal liability insurance apply as well?
No. A personal policy excludes damage connected with the practice of a profession or business. As soon as you carry out paid investigations, anything that goes wrong falls outside that cover. You need a business policy that states your capacity as a private investigator.
Read more
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