Declare in advance
- Notify before departure
- Surcharge or separate module
- Also for one-off participation
Mountain sport · rescue costs · guide
Canyoning and your insurance
Canyoning combines running water, cold and surroundings with no way out, and that is precisely the combination that policy conditions deal with badly.
- 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: Canyoning en uw verzekering.
Calculate your premium or request a quote
Without obligation; a reply within one working day.
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 your own premium with the calculator.
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 situation
- We arrange the switch, including cancellation
A premium indication, not personal advice. Prefer to talk it through? Call 072 - 509 24 56.
In brief
In a gorge you descend past waterfalls, jump into pools and slide over water-worn rock. Canyoning shares its descent technique with abseiling, but the water makes it a different risk: hypothermia, the current under a waterfall and the impossibility of walking back. Once you are in the gorge, the only way out is at the bottom.
That leads to a practical problem in the policy. Some insurers place canyoning under mountain sports, others under water sports, and a few name it as a separate activity. That classification determines which exclusions come with it. Have it confirmed in writing under which heading your insurer places it, otherwise you will only have that discussion after an accident.
The largest cost item is the evacuation. There is no road to the place where you are lying, so help comes with a rope team or a helicopter. Rescue and recovery costs form a separate section for that, with its own limit alongside medical expenses. Give those staying behind your policy number and the number of the emergency assistance centre, because in a gorge you have no signal.
What does your insurance cover for canyoning?
The structure of the cover in three parts, with an overview per situation below.
Three covers
They do not always run in step.
- Medical expenses
- Accidents and disability
- Liability
In an accident
Call before you incur costs.
- Arranging a guarantee
- Salvage and repatriation
- Keep all receipts
What is covered
| Situation | Standard | With extension |
|---|---|---|
| Medical expenses after an accident | No | Yes |
| Rescue and salvage costs | No | Yes |
| Permanent disability | No | Sometimes |
| Liability towards third parties | Sometimes | Yes |
| Taking part in competition | No | Sometimes |
| Taking part without the required qualification | 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 changes the injury pattern
The danger is rarely the fall itself. It is the cold that sets in after an hour in a wet gorge, a leg that becomes trapped under water, and the recirculating water under a waterfall that you cannot swim out of. Insurers therefore ask about the technical grade of the route and about the season. Give both honestly; afterwards, the rescue service's report shows what the conditions were.
Water levels and weather warnings determine your position
A gorge that looks dry in the morning can fill within a short time after rain in the catchment behind it. If you enter a gorge despite a published warning or a closed access point, the insurer can rely on serious fault within the meaning of Article 7:952 of the Dutch Civil Code. Keep the weather forecast and the provider's notice for that day; when you claim, that is the evidence that you acted carefully.
Evacuation takes time and has its own limit
Getting an injured person out of a gorge calls for a rope team, often combined with a helicopter that can only hover above the rim. Such operations take hours and are charged by the hour, separately from the hospital. Check the sum insured for rescue and recovery costs separately from that for medical expenses. Without a prior declaration of the sport, it is precisely that rescue bill that is refused.
What falls outside the cover
Usually excluded are: a route without a certified guide where the policy requires supervision, swimming through sumps, canyoning in the dark, and taking part in trips run by a provider without the locally required licence. If you damage the organisation's borrowed wetsuit or helmet, that falls under the care, custody and control exclusion on your liability insurance and is not covered either.
What does your premium depend on?
- With a guide or independently — Being accompanied by a certified canyoning guide is a condition of cover with several insurers.
- Technical grade of the gorge — Vertical, water-rich terrain is rated more heavily than a simple walking gorge.
- Country and accessibility — The presence of an organised rescue service in the region counts in the assessment.
- Limit for rescue and recovery costs — This is the section you hit first with this sport; choose that limit deliberately.
- Number of routes or length of trip — One booked route is insured differently from a week of canyoning or a whole season.
- Other activities on the same trip — If you combine it with climbing or diving, the whole is assessed in one go.
Insurers weigh these details differently. That is why comparing pays off.
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.
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
The questions we are asked most often about this.
Does canyoning fall under water sports or mountain sports?
That differs by insurer and it matters. Under mountain sports, altitude limits and guide requirements come with it; under water sports there are often provisions about swimming ability and about diving. So do not ask whether canyoning is insured, but under which section it falls, and have that confirmed in writing before you book.
Are the rescue costs insured separately?
Yes, rescue and recovery costs form a section of their own with its own limit, alongside medical expenses. With canyoning that is the item that runs up fastest, because the operation takes hours and is charged on the basis of equipment and manpower. Check that limit explicitly and not only the amount for medical treatment.
Do I have to take a guide?
In insurance terms, often yes. Several insurers cover canyoning only when accompanied by a certified guide and exclude independent trips. If you nevertheless go independently, declare it as such in your application. Keep the booking confirmation from the guide or the canyoning agency; it will be asked for when you claim.
I damaged the hired wetsuit. Who pays for that?
In principle you do. Liability policies have a care, custody and control exclusion: damage to items in your care, such as hired or borrowed equipment, is excluded. The provider sets it off against the deposit or sends an invoice. Ask in advance what amount is involved and check the equipment for existing tears when you receive it.
Read more
Similar pages
Ready to compare?
Request a quote without obligation. We will look at which insurer best matches your activities and your risk.
Prefer to call? 072 - 509 24 56, weekdays 09:00–17:00.
Claim on the road? Emergency line 06 - 55 20 40 72.
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.