Construction all risks (CAR) insurance for roofers
For as long as a roof lies open or the new sheets are not yet fixed, every shower and every gust of wind is a risk to the whole building below and to the surroundings.
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
The damage pattern in roofing is unusual because the damage rarely stays on the roof. Water that gets in during the interim phase damages insulation, ceilings, walls, floors and contents. That is not damage to your work but to the client's building, and it only falls under the policy if the existing property section has been included.
The second risk peculiar to this trade is fire. Torching, hot-air welding and working with hot bitumen are covered by insurers under a warranty clause for hot work. That is not advice but a condition: if it is not complied with, the insurer can refuse to pay a fire claim, even if you carried out the work faultlessly in every other respect.
The third is wind. Sheets not yet bonded or ballasted, insulation boards and roof gravel come off the roof in a gust and land on cars, gardens or neighbouring roofs. That is liability under section 2. If you work on complete roofs during a renovation, those three risks arise at the same time.
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.
Covering up is a question of cover, not a work instruction
With water damage the expert first looks at whether the roof was properly closed at the end of the working day and whether you had followed the weather forecast. Temporary covering that came loose at the first gust does not count as proper. Record each day how you closed up, if necessary with a photograph from the scaffolding. Without that evidence, water getting in quickly becomes culpable neglect instead of a sudden event.
The warranty clause for open flame is binding
Almost every insurer requires a written protocol for hot work: combustible items removed, extinguishers within reach, a designated fire watch and a check after the last flame. That is a warranty, not a recommendation. If you cannot show after a fire that the protocol was followed, you lose the cover. Working with mechanical fixings or cold adhesive systems takes that discussion away entirely.
Whatever blows off the roof is liability
Loose roofing sheets, insulation boards, ballast gravel and tools that come down through wind or carelessness damage other people's property. That runs through section 2 and not through the cover on your works. Insurers ask about storage on the roof: loosely stacked material above a car park or a school playground is a different matter from strapped bundles on a fenced-off site.
Injury does not belong on this policy
If a roofer falls from the edge, that is employers' liability under Article 7:658 of the Dutch Civil Code and falls outside the CAR policy. The same applies to an agency worker who in fact works under your direction. What does belong in section 2 is injury to a passer-by hit by falling material. Make sure edge protection and barriers are in order before the first roll goes onto the roof.
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?
Turnover from roofing work. The annual output or the contract sum per project forms the basis of the calculation.
Share of work involving naked flames. Torching and hot-air welding weigh more heavily than mechanical fixing or cold bonding.
Flat or pitched roofs. Bituminous and synthetic roofing has different causes of loss from tiled and slate roofs.
Type of building below. A roof above an office with contents or a production hall gives far more consequential damage in the event of a leak than an empty building.
Working height and access. Height determines the consequences of falling material and the requirements for barriers and safety measures.
Sum for existing property. Water damage comes down inside the client's building. That section has to be calculated on that basis.
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.
Is water damage to the interior covered by my policy?
Only with the existing property section, because the building is not your works. And even then a condition applies: the roof had to be properly covered. If it turns out that you left an open roof unprotected while rainfall was forecast, the damage is not sudden but foreseeable and the insurer will hold that against you. So photograph how you leave the roof.
What exactly does an insurer require for hot work?
A recorded protocol that has been applied on the job: combustible material out of the work zone, extinguishers immediately to hand, a designated fire watch during the work and a check after the flame has been put out. The precise requirements are set out in your policy conditions as a clause. Read them before the first hot-work job and put the points into your work instructions, not into a folder.
My roofing sheets have blown away and damaged cars.
That is a liability claim and therefore runs through section 2, not through the cover on your works. The sheets themselves are material you had yet to install. The cars are third-party property. Do expect the question of how the material was stored and whether additional measures were taken given the forecast wind.
Does it make a difference if I work without open flame?
It certainly does in the assessment of your risk. Fire is the most serious cause of loss in this trade, and insurers expressly weigh the proportion of hot work in acceptance and conditions. If you work entirely with mechanical fixings or cold adhesive systems, say so on the application. It changes both the clauses and the questions you face when you claim.
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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