Rebuild value
- Not the market value
- Not the WOZ value (the Dutch property valuation)
- Guarantee against underinsurance
Insurance for commercial buildings
With business premises you insure a building whose risk is determined by someone else: your tenant and what they do there every day.
- several insurers compared objectively
- 9.5 customer rating for a new policy
- AFM licence 12016589
- Personal 072 - 509 24 56, weekdays 9–17
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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
- We arrange the switch, including cancellation
A premium indication, not personal advice. Prefer to talk it through? Call 072 - 509 24 56.
- Independent advice
- Several insurers
- Switching arranged
- Help with claims
In brief
The basis of buildings insurance for business premises is the rebuild value: what it costs to build the same premises again in the same place, including clearing debris, professional fees and the requirements of the current building regulations. For business premises that value is structurally underestimated, because owners work from the purchase price or the WOZ value. A rebuild value assessment accepted by the insurer usually gives a guarantee against underinsurance. Without that assessment, your sum insured is tested first after a major loss and only then is payment made.
As owner you also bear a liability that is separate from your own conduct. Article 6:174 of the Dutch Civil Code imposes strict liability on the possessor of a defective structure: if a roof tile or facade panel falls, you are liable even if you knew nothing of the defect. Demonstrable periodic maintenance and inspection are therefore not only prevention, but your only defence.
If you let the premises, you insure the shell, the fixed installations and your loss of rent. The fit-out, the stock and the tenant's improvements are insured by the tenant themselves. That division belongs in the lease, together with an obligation to report a change of use.
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What does insurance for business premises cover?
The structure of the cover in three parts, with an overview per situation below.
What is included
Everything permanently attached to the building.
- Building and installations
- Outbuildings
- Boundary fences
Extensions
What is excluded as standard.
- Glass
- Garden landscaping
- Inherent defect and foundations
What is covered
| Situation | Standard | With extension |
|---|---|---|
| Fire, smoke and lightning strike | Yes | Yes |
| Storm from force 7 upwards | Yes | Yes |
| Water damage from a burst pipe | Yes | Yes |
| Glass breakage | Sometimes | Yes |
| Groundwater coming through the floor | No | No |
| Wear and deferred maintenance | 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.
What does your premium depend on?
- Rebuild value. The sum insured and with it the basis of the premium. An accepted assessment gives a guarantee against underinsurance.
- Use by the tenant. Office, storage, workshop or hospitality lead to very different risk classes.
- Construction type and roof structure. Masonry with a hard roof covering is weighed differently from sandwich panels, timber or thatch.
- Fire prevention and compartmentation. Sprinklers, a fire alarm system, fire separations and a certified electrical inspection reduce the premium.
- Vacancy and occupancy rate. Structurally empty parts lead to restricted cover and a different assessment.
- Extensions chosen. Glass, loss of rent, the owner's interest and solar panels on the roof are priced separately.
Insurers weigh these details differently. That is where your saving is.
How we arrange it
- You request a quoteWe take stock of your activities, turnover and 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.
Why arrange it through Finass Verzekert?
We look at the terms as well as the premium, and stay your point of contact when there is a claim.
Independent
We are not tied to one insurer and compare on the basis of an objective analysis of several companies.
One fixed adviser
You call or email someone who knows your file. No menu options, no changing call centres.
Switching without hassle
We cancel your old policy and align the start date, so you are never a day without cover.
Help with claims
We report the claim and monitor how it is handled. In urgent cases you can reach us on the emergency line.
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.
Where things go wrong in practice
Four points that make the difference between a policy that pays out and one that does not.
The tenant's use determines your acceptance
An office unit let to a paint shop, a storage space where electric vehicle batteries are charged, or a multi-tenant building that gains a commercial kitchen: each of these changes your building's fire risk radically. Include an obligation to report a change of use in the lease, check periodically and pass the change on. An unreported increase in the risk can entitle the insurer to limit or end the cover.
Vacancy changes the cover automatically
As soon as a building or part of it becomes empty, most policies restrict cover to fire, storm, lightning and explosion. Water damage, vandalism and theft of installations then drop out: precisely the types of loss that occur most often during vacancy. Report vacancy actively and in good time. If you wait until there is a loss, the restriction only emerges at the moment you need the cover.
Loss of rent is a separate section
After a fire or serious water damage your premises stand empty for months while the mortgage payments continue. Buildings insurance pays for repairs, not for lost rent. Loss of rent is an extension with its own indemnity period, usually expressed in months. Match that period to the realistic repair time for your type of building, including permit procedures — for listed or specialist business premises that is considerably longer than for a standard business unit.
What a buildings policy does not pay for
Outside the cover, usually, are: damage from deferred maintenance, construction and design faults, gradual ground settlement and foundation repairs, penetrating groundwater, earthquake and flooding from primary flood defences. Asbestos removal after a loss and the additional cost of changed building regulations are also often limited or excluded. During conversion work, damage to the works themselves falls under Construction all risks (CAR) insurance, not under the buildings policy.
Frequently asked questions
This is what people ask us most.
Who insures what where premises are let: owner or tenant?
The owner insures the shell, the fixed installations and their loss of rent. The tenant insures the contents, the stock and the tenant's improvements: the improvements made by the tenant such as a kitchenette, system partitions or a workshop floor. Put that division explicitly in the lease. Without it, it emerges after a loss that the fit-out the tenant paid for was insured by nobody.
Am I liable as owner even if I did nothing wrong?
Yes, you may be. Article 6:174 of the Dutch Civil Code imposes strict liability on the possessor of a structure: if the building does not meet the standards that may be expected of it and damage results, you are liable even without knowledge or fault. Demonstrable periodic maintenance, facade inspections and acting on defects found are the way to limit that liability.
Are solar panels on the roof covered as well?
Permanently mounted panels are often regarded as part of the building, but that is not a given for large installations on commercial roofs. Declare the installation and its value separately. Note as well the requirements the insurer sets for installation, inspection and the roof structure. An installation that does not meet those requirements can affect the cover for the whole roof.
What happens if the rebuild value turns out to be too low?
Underinsurance then applies and the loss is paid proportionately: if the premises are insured for seventy per cent of the actual rebuild value, you receive only that share even for partial damage. A rebuild value assessment accepted by the insurer prevents this for the term of the guarantee, provided you report changes to the building as they occur.
Every situation is different. For these situations we have a separate page.
- Buildings insurance (opstalverzekering) and commercial buildings insurance (gebouwenverzekering): the same or not?The main page
- Compare insurance for propertyArticle 6:174 of the Dutch Civil Code, loss of rent, vacancy
- Buildings insurance (opstalverzekering) for an industrial unitRebuild value, construction, prevention requirements
- Insuring an apartment that is letVvE, owner's interest, tenant
- Buildings insurance for propertyPortfolio, loss of rent, vacancy
- Buildings insurance for a VvECompulsory, rebuild value, all owners
- Buildings and premises insurance for propertyRebuild value, loss of rent, glass
- Financing commercial property: we refer you onNote: borrowing money costs money, security, declaring letting
- Commercial buildings insurance (opstalverzekering) when letting your premisesLoss of rent, vacancy, tenant's improvements
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 compiled by Finass Verzekert (LinkedIn). Last updated on .
The information on this page is general in nature and is not personal advice.