Liability insurance for a transport company
At a haulage company three insurances run into each other: the cover on the vehicles, liability for the load and the AVB. Anyone who does not keep those three apart discovers it only at the first large loss.
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In brief
The AVB covers injury and property damage to third parties not caused with a motor vehicle and not caused to the load being carried. That is a narrower space than many hauliers think. Damage to the goods you carry falls under your liability as a carrier and is assessed under the AVC or CMR conditions; separate carrier's liability insurance exists for that. If you carry only your own goods, that belongs on own goods in transit insurance or a goods in transit insurance.
What does belong on the AVB happens around the vehicle: the forklift that hits a roller shutter door at the client, a pallet falling off the tail lift onto a parked car, a driver damaging a pipe on the client's site, and injury to visitors or agency workers in your own warehouse. The employers' liability section also weighs heavily, because loading, lashing and climbing on the trailer produce the most injury claims in this sector.
Watch three boundaries. Damage caused with or by a motor vehicle is excluded and runs through the lorry insurance. Damage to property in your keeping — a haulier's trailer, a borrowed trailer, goods in your cross-dock — falls under the care, custody and control exclusion. And soil or water pollution after a leak calls for environmental damage insurance, because the AVB covers only sudden and unforeseen environmental damage to third parties and not the clean-up of your own site.
This page deals with one situation. The full overview is on Compare public and employers' liability insurance (AVB).
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Business liability insurance (AVB)
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What to look out for
Four points on which a transport claim comes unstuck more often than on the level of the sum insured.
Damage to the load is not an AVB loss
A crushed pallet, a stack that has toppled or spoilage from a failed refrigeration unit concerns the goods carried and therefore your liability as a carrier. That liability is limited by weight under AVC and CMR and belongs on carrier's liability insurance. The AVB excludes damage to goods carried; two policies side by side is the norm here.
Loading and unloading at the client
On a client's site you cause most damage: a dock leveller struck, a damaged racking upright, a sprinkler pipe network hit. This damage can fall under the AVB, but the insurer will test whether the vehicle was the cause. If it happens with the tail lift or the truck-mounted forklift, an argument between the AVB and the motor insurer often follows.
Duty of care towards drivers and loading staff
Back injuries from lashing, a fall from the trailer and crush injuries at the tail lift are the classic claims. Under Article 7:658 of the Dutch Civil Code you must show that you arranged instruction, fall protection and aids. Hired-in drivers and agency workers also fall under your duty of care under subsection 4 of that same article.
Subcontracted hauliers, outsourcing and recovery
If you subcontract journeys, you usually remain liable towards your client. Check whether the subcontracted haulier is insured himself and whether your policy includes liability for subordinates and non-subordinates. Liability you take on only through a contractual guarantee or indemnity is generally excluded on the AVB.
What does your premium depend on?
- Turnover and payroll: both count at a business with staff
- Number of drivers and loading staff: decisive for employers' liability
- Type of transport: general cargo, refrigerated transport, bulk or hazardous substances
- Own warehouse and transhipment yard: more storage means more risk of injury and property damage
- Use of charter hauliers: outsourcing calls for cover for non-subordinates
- Area of cover: domestic transport or journeys across Europe
Insurers weigh these details differently. That is where your saving is.
What is covered
| Situation | Basic | Extended |
|---|---|---|
| A visitor to your warehouse is struck by an electric pallet truck | Yes | Yes |
| A client's refrigerated container stored with you is damaged | No | Provided that |
| A warehouse racking unit collapses and the goods of three clients are unusable | No | No |
| Hydraulic oil leaks from a forklift and contaminates the soil on the client's site | Provided that | Yes |
| A hired-in loading assistant damages the shop fit-out with a hand pallet truck | Provided that | Yes |
| The client charges for the standstill of his production line after a late delivery | No | No |
Extended here means a policy with care, custody and control cover, environmental damage and liability for non-subordinates included.
Frequently asked questions
This is what people ask us most.
Why do I need carrier's liability insurance as well as the AVB?
Because two different interests are involved. The AVB is about damage to third parties' persons and property outside the contract of carriage. Your liability for the load follows from the contract of carriage and the AVC or CMR conditions, and is excluded on the AVB. If you carry only your own goods, own goods in transit insurance is the appropriate alternative.
A driver breaks a roller shutter door at the client. Where do I report that?
First to the motor insurer, because damage caused with or by the lorry falls under the WAM regime and not under the AVB. If it happens with a loose hand pallet truck or during manual unloading, the AVB comes into play. Report the incident to both insurers where the cause is not immediately clear; Article 7:941 of the Dutch Civil Code calls for timely notification.
Is environmental damage after a diesel leak covered?
To a limited extent. The AVB generally covers only sudden and unforeseen environmental damage affecting third parties. Gradual pollution and the clean-up of your own site are excluded. Environmental damage insurance exists for those costs. If you carry ADR goods, have it expressly recorded which substances are included.
Are fines from the ILT or a foreign enforcement body insured?
No. Administrative fines and penalty payments are a punishment and not compensation, and are therefore excluded on every liability policy. The same applies to penalties a client imposes on you for late delivery. For defending against enforcement action you can look at business legal expenses insurance.
Every situation is different. For these situations we have a separate page.
- Compare public and employers' liability insurance (AVB)The main page
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