Working underwater · medical certification · care, custody and control
Diver liability insurance
Underwater there is no second chance and no witness. That makes the record of the dive, the medical certificate and the procedure used your most important defence against a claim.
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
Professional divers work on quay walls, locks, sheet piling, ships' hulls and offshore installations. The AVB covers the damage you cause to property and people in doing so. If you work on the object itself, the care, custody and control exclusion also comes into play.
Diving work has its own statutory requirements: a valid diving medical certificate, a dive team of the prescribed composition and a dive plan. Insurers ask about these when they take you on and again when there is a claim.
The structure of the cover in three parts, with an overview per situation below.
The basics
Liability
Damage to property and people during diving work.
Damage to the object
Injury to third parties
Work on quays and sheet piling
The extension
Care, custody and control
The object you are diving on, excluded as standard.
Sheet piling and quay wall
Hull
Lock and installation
Separate
Plant and machinery
Diving equipment, cameras and tools.
Not on the AVB
Business contents or goods in transit
Vulnerable underwater
What is covered
Situation
AVB
With care, custody and control
Damage to a passing vessel
Yes
Yes
Injury to a colleague or a third party
Yes
Yes
Damage to the sheet piling you are working on
No
Yes
A damaged hull during an inspection
No
Yes
Work outside territorial waters
No
No
An expired diving medical certificate
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.
Care, custody and control: the object you are working on
If you damage the sheet piling, quay wall or hull you are working on, that is a care, custody and control loss and excluded as standard. For diving work that is almost always the object itself.
Medical certification and team composition
An expired diving medical certificate or a team that is too small breaches the statutory requirements. If there is an accident, liability then shifts entirely to you.
Offshore is excluded as standard
Work outside territorial waters falls outside almost every AVB. Have offshore work insured explicitly if you do it.
Equipment underwater
Diving equipment, cameras and tools are not covered by the AVB. You insure those separately under a business contents or goods in transit policy.
What does your premium depend on?
Annual turnover: the main basis for calculation
Type of diving work: inspection, construction or salvage
Working area: inland waters, coastal waters or offshore
Number of divers and team composition
Sum insured per claim
Certification and claims history
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.
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.
Not as standard. That is a care, custody and control loss and excluded on an AVB. For diving work that matters a great deal, because you almost always work on the object itself.
Does the cover also apply offshore?
Only if that is insured explicitly. Work outside territorial waters is excluded as standard.
What documents does the insurer ask for?
Diving medical certificates, the divers' qualifications and the dive plan for each project. Keep them current and be able to produce them.
Is my diving equipment covered?
No. The AVB covers liability, not your own equipment. For that you need a business contents or goods in transit policy.
Which sum insured do clients require?
That is set out in the contract or specification and varies widely by sector. In industry and petrochemicals it is often several million per claim. Ask for the requirement before you tender.
What is the difference between the AVB and the BAV?
The AVB covers damage to property and injury to people. The BAV covers pure financial loss: financial disadvantage caused by an error, without anything being broken or anyone being injured. In downtime and delay claims, that is the difference that counts.
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.
