Liability
- Damage to third parties
- Employers' liability
- Care, custody and control as an extension
Garage insurance for tuning businesses
As soon as you modify a vehicle, you change the type approval on which your customer's registration and insurance rest.
- several insurers compared objectively
- 9.5 customer rating for a new policy
- AFM licence 12016589
- Personal 072 - 509 24 56, weekdays 9–17
This page in another language: Nederlands
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
A structural modification has to be inspected or notified. If that does not happen, your customer is driving a vehicle that differs from the details on which their insurer accepted the risk. In the event of a claim that insurer can fall back on the duty of disclosure under Article 7:928 of the Dutch Civil Code and on the sanction of Article 7:930 DCC. Your customer then comes back to you, because you are the professional who should have known.
With power and braking modifications an error goes straight to road safety. More torque on an unmodified driveline, a braking system that has not been uprated to match the extra power, or a lowering that upsets the geometry: the consequence occurs outside your workshop. That amounts to a wrongful act within the meaning of Article 6:162 of the Dutch Civil Code.
The third point is evidence. Software tuning leaves few visible traces and can be reversed. Record for each vehicle what you changed, what warning you gave and what the customer signed for. See also the wider structure of the garage insurance and the SME insurance package.
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What does motor trade insurance cover for tuning businesses?
The structure of the cover in three parts, with an overview per situation below.
Assets and continuity
Business contents, goods and lost turnover during downtime.
- Business contents at replacement value as new
- Goods at cost price
- Business interruption or additional costs
Staff
Sickness absence, accidents and the traffic risk.
- Continued pay for 104 weeks
- Group personal accident
- WEGAS for traffic risks
What is covered
| Situation | AVB | BAV | Cyber |
|---|---|---|---|
| Injury to a visitor or customer | Yes | No | No |
| Damage to a client's property | Sometimes | No | No |
| Financial loss caused by an advisory or calculation error | No | Yes | No |
| Downtime after a ransomware attack | No | No | Yes |
| Data breach involving personal data | No | Sometimes | Yes |
| Damage to property in your care | No | 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?
- Nature of the modifications. Cosmetic work weighs less heavily than work on power, brakes or suspension.
- Share of software tuning. Modifying engine management carries a higher risk of engine damage and of disputes about evidence.
- Handling of inspections. Whether you handle the inspection process for structural modifications yourself or leave it to the customer.
- Test drive and circuit policy. Test drives on the road, on a trade plate, or the use of a track.
- Care, custody and control limit for vehicles being worked on. Projects sometimes stay open for months, so the value in your building builds up.
- Turnover and payroll. Turnover from parts, labour and software plus the number of mechanics form the basis.
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.
Your duty to inform about approval and insurance
As a professional you know which modifications require inspection and which affect your customer's cover; they do not. If you leave that unsaid and an accident follows in which their insurer refuses cover, the dispute lands with you. Set out the consequences for approval, registration and insurance in writing in your quotation and have the customer sign for it before you start.
More power than the rest of the car can take
An increase in power puts more load on the clutch, gearbox, driveshafts, cooling and brakes than they were designed for. If one of those parts then fails, the question is whether you should have warned or should have refused. The part you supplied or worked on yourself falls outside the liability cover as the item worked on; the consequential damage to the rest of the vehicle and to third parties does not, in principle.
Software tuning is hard to prove
A modified engine management map cannot be seen and can be reset, including by the customer. In a dispute about the cause of engine damage you are empty-handed without records. Keep the original software, log which version was written when and which values were changed. The cost of returning the car to factory condition is not an insured loss but putting your own supply right.
Competitions and circuit use fall outside
If you test a modified vehicle on a circuit or take part in a track event, that falls under the exclusion for speed trials and competitions on virtually every policy. On the public road too, a test drive in a modified vehicle is subject to the compulsory cover of Article 2 WAM. Arrange test drives on a trade plate and record who is driving.
Frequently asked questions
This is what people ask us most.
Am I liable if the customer does not declare the modification?
That depends on what you told them. You are the professional and are expected to know which modifications require inspection and which affect the customer's cover. If you notified them in writing and had it signed off, the failure is theirs. Without those records, your position in a claim is weak.
Is damage to the part I modified covered?
No. Damage to the item you supplied or worked on is excluded on liability policies. If the engine seizes after an increase in power, rebuilding the modified parts falls outside the cover. Damage to other parts of the vehicle or to third parties may qualify for payment.
Does my policy cover a test on a circuit?
As a rule, no. Speed trials, competitions and track events are a standard exclusion, even where the purpose is only to set the car up. If you want to test modified vehicles on a track, discuss it beforehand; some insurers accept it on additional conditions, others do not. Without an agreement in advance you bear the loss yourself.
What must I record in writing?
Which parts have been changed, which software version was written, whether the modification requires inspection and what consequences that has for the customer's registration and insurance. Keep the original software and the customer's signed acknowledgement as well. In a dispute, these documents determine whether responsibility lies with you or with them.
Every situation is different. For these situations we have a separate page.
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Read more
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.