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
A premium indication, not personal advice. Prefer to talk it through? Call 072 - 509 24 56.
In brief
In most building trades the work itself is the insured object. In painting, the coat you apply is of little value, while the surroundings it lands on are not. Cars on the drive, a newly laid terrace, window frames, glass, facade cladding and the neighbours' garden: that is where the claims come from.
In legal terms that splits into two streams. Paint on third-party property is liability and runs through the liability section or your AVB, with Article 6:162 of the Dutch Civil Code as the basis. Paint or damage on the building you are working on is the client's existing property and specifically falls outside that, because the object of your work is caught by the care, custody and control clause.
This trade also carries a pronounced fire risk. Solvents, burning off and cloths with drying oil produce a type of loss that rarely stays small.
The structure of the cover in three parts, with an overview per situation below.
Section 1
The works
Damage to the works themselves during construction or installation.
Fire, storm and water
Theft of materials
Inherent defect and design fault
Vandalism on the building site
Section 2
Liability
Damage to property and persons of third parties on and around the works.
Adjoining premises
Injury to bystanders
Cables and pipes
Optional
Extensions
What comes into play alongside the works themselves.
Client's existing property
Ancillary plant and site huts
Maintenance period
What is covered
Situation
Works section
Liability section
Storm or water damage to the works in progress
Yes
No
Theft of materials from the building site
Sometimes
No
Damage to an adjoining building
No
Yes
Injury to a bystander
No
Yes
The client's existing property
Sometimes
Sometimes
Repair of your own defective work
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.
Overspray is not an accident but a foreseeable consequence
On a claim about overspray the insurer checks whether you had masked up and whether conditions were suitable. Spraying in wind, without masking adjoining properties and without checking the cars in the street, quickly counts as accepting a foreseeable risk. Photograph the masking before you pick up the spray gun and note the wind force and direction. That file determines whether this becomes a covered claim or your own bill.
The building you paint is not your works
A cracked pane, a damaged frame, paint on a natural stone sill or a dented facade panel concerns your client's building. That is not damage to your works, and on your liability insurance it is excluded because you had the property in your charge. Only the existing property section fills that gap. On renovation work to facades that is not a borderline case but the bulk of your claims burden.
Cloths with drying oil ignite by themselves
Rags with linseed oil, stand oil or certain stains can get so hot through oxidation, hours after use, that they catch fire, even with no flame nearby. Keep them in a metal container with a lid or lay them out to dry outside, and never leave them in a bucket or waste bag inside the building. Fire traceable to this is assessed as gross fault within the meaning of Article 7:952 of the Dutch Civil Code.
Three items that fall outside the cover on painting work
Repainting the wrong colour, poorly adhering paint or inadequate preparation is repair of your own work and therefore at your expense. Damage from wood rot or damp already present in the substrate is a defect of the building and not a sudden event. And your scaffolding, spray equipment and paint stock are ancillary plant: they are only included if you have declared them separately, with requirements about storage after working hours.
Existing property is the most commonly missed section
If you work in or on an existing building, that building is not your works but the property of the client. Damage to it does not fall under section 1 and, on your AVB, falls under the care, custody and control exclusion. The section existing property fills that gap, and with conversions, renovations and installation work that is not an edge case but the core of the risk.
The maintenance period continues after handover
After handover there is often a maintenance period during which you remain liable for defects that arose during construction. Agree that period explicitly and have it stated on the policy. Under the Wet kwaliteitsborging (the Dutch Building Quality Assurance Act) this carries more weight: Article 7:758(4) of the Dutch Civil Code places the burden of proof for hidden defects on the contractor.
What does your premium depend on?
Share of spray work in your turnover. Rollers and brushes barely spread; spraying considerably increases the reach of a mistake.
Indoor or outdoor work. Exterior work brings wind, adjoining properties and parked vehicles into play; interior work mainly floors and contents.
Hot work. Burning off, hot-air work and working with solvents lead to additional conditions and a heavier weighting.
Working height and use of scaffolding. Determines the chance of falling material and of injury to your own staff or to passers-by.
Type of buildings you work on. Listed buildings, facades on the public road and occupied buildings weigh more heavily than new build in the finishing phase.
Level of the existing property section. It has to match the value of the buildings you work on, not your contract sum.
Insurers weigh these details differently. That is where your saving is.
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.
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.
There is overspray on four cars in the street. What now?
Report it to your insurer immediately; Article 7:941 of the Dutch Civil Code requires you to report as soon as you know of the damage. Do not admit liability and have the cars assessed by an expert before anything is polished, because the costs of polishing or respraying vary widely. Your file on masking and weather conditions determines how the insurer assesses the claim.
Is damage to the frames I am painting covered by the policy?
Not automatically. The frame is part of your client's building and therefore existing property, and your liability insurance excludes damage to property you had in your charge. Only if the client's existing property section is insured, and with a limit that matches the building, is there cover for that damage.
What do I have to arrange if I am burning off or using a hot-air gun?
For open flame, insurers generally set requirements: remove combustible material, keep an extinguisher within reach, do not work in the last hours of the day and check the work area afterwards. Report in advance that you use this technique, because undeclared hot work can lead to a reduced payout or a rejected claim after a fire.
My paintwork is flaking after a year. Is that insured?
No. Inadequate adhesion, wrong treatment of the substrate or painting at too low a temperature is defective work and redoing it is at your expense. If that defect causes consequential damage to other property, for example wood rot in an unprotected frame that lets rain in as a result, that consequential damage can qualify for cover.
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.
