On a Belgian campsite, cover almost always runs through a local fire policy for simple risks, and that is built up differently from a Dutch chalet or static caravan policy.
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In brief
For homes and small buildings, the Belgian market has the fire insurance for simple risks. That is not a fire policy in the Dutch sense: fire, storm, hail, water damage, glass breakage and natural disasters are all included as a package. A Dutch property policy works the other way round and covers section by section, with you deciding what to tick or leave out. Both routes are possible for a chalet on a Belgian pitch, but you choose one. Half on one policy and half on the other means two insurers pointing at each other when you claim.
The second point is which law applies. If someone is injured by a defect in your chalet, that liability is judged under the law of the place where the damage occurs. Article 6:174 of the Dutch Civil Code, which in the Netherlands designates the owner of a building, plays no part there. Your Dutch personal liability insurance (AVP) often does cover your conduct abroad, but it excludes damage arising from immovable property you own outside the Netherlands.
Outside every route are: permanent occupation without the operator's consent, letting you have not declared, defects in the pitch, the utility connection or the foundations, and wear or deferred maintenance on the chalet itself. If your unit is in Germany or in The Netherlands, other points apply.
Chalet or static caravan in Belgium: what is covered?
The structure of the cover in three parts, with an overview per situation below.
Through the towing vehicle
Liability
Damage you cause to others with the trailer.
Covered while coupled
Under the car's third-party liability cover
Uncoupled: no longer covered
The object itself
Third-party, fire and theft
External causes beyond your control.
Fire and storm
Theft after forced entry
Hail, depending on the policy
Full
Comprehensive
Including damage you cause yourself.
Collision and manoeuvring
Vandalism
Contents as a separate section
What is covered
Situation
Third-party, fire and theft
Comprehensive
Theft after forced entry, with the prescribed lock
Yes
Yes
Fire and storm damage on the pitch
Yes
Yes
Hail damage to roof and walls
Provided that
Yes
Collision damage while manoeuvring
No
Yes
Contents in the caravan or trailer
Provided that
Provided that
Damp, wear and deferred maintenance
No
No
A trailer or caravan is not an independent motor vehicle and therefore has no insurance requirement of its own. Damage you cause to others with it falls under the third-party liability cover of the towing vehicle, as long as the combination is coupled (Article 2 WAM). Once the trailer is uncoupled and has come to a standstill, that cover no longer applies.
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.
Check whether the chalet itself is in the campsite's policy
Many Belgian operators put forward a collective fire policy. As a rule it covers the campsite's buildings and installations, not automatically your own chalet or static caravan. Ask for the policy schedule and look at the description of the insured property: if it only lists the park's infrastructure, your own unit is uninsured while you are under the impression that it is all arranged. If you also take out a Dutch policy, check that you are not paying premium twice for the same perils.
Waiver of recourse in the pitch contract
Belgian pitch contracts regularly contain a clause waiver of recourse: you and the operator agree not to hold each other liable for certain damage. Such an agreement also binds your insurer, because it can never recover more than you can yourself. Conversely, a clause can make you liable for damage to the pitch or to neighbouring chalets. Put the contract before your adviser before you sign, so that the policy matches what you have already given away or taken on contractually.
Separate liability cover for the pitch
Because the Dutch rule in Article 6:174 of the Dutch Civil Code stops at the border and many personal liability policies exclude foreign immovable property, the pitch needs to be arranged separately. That can be done as a section of the property policy or as part of the Belgian fire policy, in which liability for fire and explosion is normally included. Have the address of the pitch put on the policy schedule. Without that entry, it is often unclear when a visitor is injured whether the cover extends to the site or only to the unit.
Letting through the campsite is a change of risk
Belgian parks often act as agents for letting your chalet in the weeks when you are not there yourself. That changes the risk: changing users, more wear and tear, and damage whose author has left. Letting you do not declare falls outside the cover. When the policy is taken out, the duty of disclosure under Article 7:928 of the Dutch Civil Code; an incorrect or incomplete disclosure can reduce the payout or cause it to lapse under Article 7:930 of the Dutch Civil Codealso applies. So declare letting in advance, even if it is only a few weeks.
Park rules
Many parks require liability cover. Check what the park requires before you take anything out.
Chalet or static caravan: the classification determines everything
If the property stands on a foundation and cannot be moved without being dismantled, it is treated as a building and insured on a rebuild value basis. A movable static caravan falls under caravan-type cover based on the list price. If that classification does not match reality, neither does the valuation: and you only find out when the property is a total loss.
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That depends on the route, and this is exactly where the two systems diverge. In the Belgian fire policy for simple risks, natural disasters such as flooding are normally part of the package. Dutch property policies, by contrast, exclude flooding and water entering from outside as standard. If your pitch is beside a stream or low-lying on the site, have it confirmed in writing which water damage does and does not count.
What does waiver of recourse in my pitch contract mean?
It means you give up the right to hold the operator liable for certain damage, for example damage caused by a defect in the site or in the utility supply. Your insurer then cannot recover that damage either. That is not necessarily unfavourable, but you should know about it before you sign, so that your own cover fills the gap.
Does Article 6:174 of the Dutch Civil Code apply to my chalet in Belgium?
No. That provision designates the owner of a defective building in the Netherlands as the liable party. If the damage arises on Belgian territory, liability is judged under Belgian law. The practical consequence: you cannot fall back on the idea that your Dutch liability insurance will sort it out. Check whether the territorial scope mentions Belgium and whether foreign immovable property is excluded.
Can I simply keep the chalet on a Dutch policy?
Often you can, provided the territorial scope expressly mentions Belgium. Ask further about two points: how loss adjusting is arranged on the spot, and in which language the conditions and the correspondence are handled. If the campsite also requires you to join a collective fire policy, find out which perils that already includes so that you do not cover them twice.
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.
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