Insuring a second home through Hienfeld
A second home across the border seldom fits on an ordinary home policy. The questions are which law applies, who manages the property and how long it stands empty each year.
- 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 situation
- 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
Finass Advies arranges cover through more than thirty insurers; Hienfeld is one of them and comes into play when a risk falls outside the standard application form. A second home is such a case: the property is in another country, you are there for only part of the year, and the construction and the perils differ from what a Dutch home policy assumes. What a Dutch policy can give you is a set of conditions and claims handling in Dutch and cover that matches your ownership interest. What that policy does not do is replace the local rules.
That last point is the main thing to watch. In some countries an owners' association, a letting agent or the mortgage lender requires a local policy, and sometimes part of the building is already insured collectively. Map that out before you take out Dutch cover, otherwise you pay twice for the building while your ownership interest, your contents and your liability are left uninsured. With an apartment, ask explicitly which parts the collective policy covers and where your own cover begins. General information by country can be found under holiday home insurance, for example for France and Spain.
The second theme is vacancy. A second home stands unattended for most of the year. Insurers attach conditions to that: draining the water pipes and closing the stopcock outside the season, a minimum temperature in frost, a periodic check by a caretaker or neighbour, and burglar-resistant locks and fastenings. If those are not met, the damage that follows is not covered. You can read more about this provider's role with non-standard risks under insurance through Hienfeld.
This page deals with one situation. The full overview is on Compare holiday home and chalet insurance.
Independent, personal, sorted quickly
We compare your holiday home insurance across dozens of insurers, explain where the real differences lie, and arrange the switch from start to finish — without you having to chase it yourself.
Holiday home insurance
Compare
Get coveredWhy 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.
What to look out for
Four points that lead to discussion with a property across the border more often than the sum insured does.
Natural perils differ by country
The list of perils is not the same everywhere. Earthquake, flooding and landslip are excluded on virtually every policy, while those are precisely the perils that are real in mountainous or low-lying areas. Forest fire, avalanche and mudflow may also be arranged separately or excluded. Have it established for each location which perils are and are not included, and do not accept an assumption based on the Dutch situation.
Letting changes the risk
If you put the property up for letting, even for only a few weeks a year, that is a circumstance you must declare when you apply, under Article 7:928 of the Dutch Civil Code. If you do not, the insurer can limit or refuse the payout under Article 7:930 of the Dutch Civil Code. Damage caused by tenants and theft without signs of forced entry are moreover often excluded.
Liability as the owner
As the owner of a building, you are, under Article 6:174 of the Dutch Civil Code of the Dutch Civil Code for damage caused by a defect: a roof tile that comes loose, a balcony that gives way, a slippery staircase. A Dutch personal liability insurance does not always cover a second home abroad, and sometimes only if it has been declared. Check this separately, because this claim does not come out of the buildings cover.
Maintenance and slow damage
What is insured is a sudden, unforeseen event. Damp, mould, woodworm, termites, settlement of the foundations and deferred maintenance to roof and gutters fall outside it. With a property that is shut up for months in a damp or hot climate, that is a real ground for refusal. Ventilation, a maintenance contract and periodic inspection are not luxuries here but conditions of cover.
What does your premium depend on?
- Country and location: coast, mountains or inland determine the list of perils
- Construction type of the building: brick, timber or mixed construction
- Rebuild value: local building costs differ from Dutch ones
- Number of weeks of your own use: the longer it stands empty, the heavier the unoccupancy conditions
- Letting to third parties: whether or not you let, and through an agent or yourself
- Security and supervision: locks and fastenings, an alarm and a local caretaker
Insurers weigh these details differently. That is where your saving is.
What is covered
| Situation | Extended | Comprehensive |
|---|---|---|
| A summer storm throws a tree from your garden onto the veranda of the house | Yes | Yes |
| Burglars force the shutter and take the television and the bicycles | Yes | Yes |
| A cloudburst makes the gutter overflow and the water gets into the living room | Provided that | Yes |
| While furnishing the house you drop a tin of paint on the new floor tiles | No | Yes |
| After fire damage the property is unusable for months and you incur the cost of alternative accommodation | No | Provided that |
| The septic tank overflows and the sewage damages the garden landscaping | No | No |
The building is paid out at local rebuilding costs. Your contents need their own sum insured on the same policy schedule.
Frequently asked questions
This is what people ask us most.
Can I put my property abroad on a Dutch policy?
Often you can, provided the country falls within the insurer's territorial scope and the property meets the acceptance conditions. The advantage is that you read the conditions in Dutch and settle claims in Dutch. The disadvantage is that local obligations do not disappear as a result: an owners' association or a lender may still require a local policy.
Are the contents included?
Not automatically. The buildings cover is about the building and its fixed parts; furniture, appliances, bicycles and garden furniture need a separate contents section with its own sum insured. Sub-limits often apply to valuables. Bear in mind that theft from an unoccupied property is normally only paid for where there are signs of forced entry.
What happens with frost damage when I am not there?
That depends on the frost clause in your policy. It usually requires you to drain the water pipes and close the stopcock outside the season, or to maintain a minimum temperature. If that has not been done and a pipe bursts, the water damage is normally refused. Record who prepares the property for winter and keep evidence of it.
Do I have to tell you if I am going to renovate?
Yes. A renovation changes the construction, the value and, temporarily, the risk as well, because materials are lying about and the property may be left open. Declare it in advance, so that a temporary clause can be added where necessary. Damage caused by the work itself is not an insured peril on the buildings policy and belongs with the contractor or with separate construction cover.
Every situation is different. For these situations we have a separate page.
- Holiday home insuranceThe main page
- Insuring a holiday home privately through OOM VerzekeringenOwn use, winter shutdown, foundation risk
- Insuring a holiday homeStanding empty, letting, abroad
- Insuring holiday homes for business use through OOM VerzekeringenLetting, guest damage, loss of turnover
- Insuring a holiday home through Turien & CoPark rules, construction type, clause sheet
- A mortgage for a second homeBox 3, part-time occupation, letting
- Buildings insurance (opstalverzekering) for a second homeStanding empty, frost, declaring