Hiscox · compared independently · advice from Finass
Professional indemnity insurance through Hiscox
For service providers who work with knowledge, code and advice: the form we use through Hiscox brings professional and public liability together in one policy.
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
<p>In services in IT, communications, consultancy and interim work, the line between a professional error and ordinary public and employers' liability is blurred. A wrongly configured interface that makes a customer's records unusable is neither broken property nor injury, but it is a loss. So here we use a form in which professional and public liability sit in one policy, with one point of contact when a claim arises.</p>
<p>That arrangement stops two insurers pointing at each other over whether something was an advice error or an error in the work. The points to watch here are mainly the area of operation: you work for foreign clients sooner than you think, and the question of what happens after you wind up your business.</p>
<p>We are not tied to Hiscox and compare this form with those of other providers. If you have a technical or structural design practice in which the mistake only comes to light during construction, the form we use through Hienfeld is usually a better fit.</p>
The structure of the cover in three parts, with an overview per situation below.
Basic cover
The basic cover insures the essentials. We show what Hiscox and other insurers offer here.
Retroactive cover (prior risk)
Incorrect advice or calculation
Negligence or omission
Defence costs when a claim is made
Extended cover
On top of that to professional errors, also statutory interest, retroactive cover and errors by employees.
Agency workers, interns & volunteers
Retroactive cover (prior risk)
Errors by employees
Loss of documents
Complete package
The most complete cover. We compare Hiscox's extended versions with the market.
Claims by third parties
Defence & legal costs
Retroactive cover (prior risk)
Higher sums insured
What is covered
Situation
AVB
BAV
Cyber
Injury to a visitor or customer
Yes
No
No
Damage to a client's property
Provided it is declared
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
Provided it is declared
Yes
Damage to property in your care
No
No
No
What we do
What we do
At Finass
Direct with Hiscox
Comparison across several insurers
Yes
No
Advice based on your own situation
Yes
Sometimes
One point of contact for claims
Yes
Sometimes
Cancellation with your current insurer arranged
Yes
No
We determine whether Hiscox is the best choice
Yes
No
Advice fees for you as a customer
No
No
This overview concerns our service, not the cover. What is actually covered is set out in the policy conditions and on the insurer's insurance card (verzekeringskaart); you receive both before you take out cover.
Where things go wrong in practice
Four points that make the difference between a policy that pays out and one that does not.
Professional and public liability in one policy
With service providers it all runs together: you give advice, you build something, you work within the customer's team. If the cover sits in two separate policies, a claim starts with an argument about the label. In one policy that argument disappears. What is not included is damage to property that you have in your care, such as equipment borrowed from the customer. For that you need a care, custody and control extension.
Territorial scope and clients abroad
A policy has a territory within which claims are covered and a jurisdiction within which they may be brought. If you work for a client in the United States, Canada or the United Kingdom, that often falls outside the standard cover, even where you do the work from the Netherlands. If you supply online services to customers worldwide, say so when you apply.
Where professional indemnity stops in digital work
If your own system is held to ransom or personal data leak from your environment, that is not a professional error towards a client but your own business problem. For that you need a cyber insurance. Nor are fines from regulators insurable. Infringement of copyright or trade marks through images or text you use is sometimes co-insured but more often excluded; check that point expressly.
Run-off cover when you stop
The cover follows the claim, not the mistake. If you wind up your business, retire or take up employment, a client can still bring a claim about old work afterwards. Without run-off period that claim is uninsured, because there is no longer a policy in force at that moment. Arrange that run-off cover on termination; buying it afterwards rarely works.
Retroactive cover (prior risk)
Retroactive cover (prior risk) Included for your staff during work.
Defence & legal costs
What does your premium depend on?
Nature of the services. Software development, marketing advice and interim management each have their own claims profile.
Annual turnover. Turnover is the usual basis for calculation. The size of your largest assignment also counts.
Sum insured per claim. Clients often require a minimum in the contract. In practice that requirement determines your choice.
Territory and jurisdiction. Extension to North America or the United Kingdom raises the rate considerably.
Excess per claim. A higher excess keeps small disputes outside the policy and lowers the premium.
Retroactive and run-off periods chosen. Cover for old work and for claims after termination is charged 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.
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.
For service providers whose product is knowledge: IT and software development, marketing and communications, consultancy, interim management and online services. The hallmark is that the client suffers a loss without anything being broken. For practices with a technical or structural design risk we look at a different arrangement, because there the fit with the construction process weighs more heavily.
Am I covered for assignments abroad?
Only if the territory allows it. As standard, cover is often limited to Europe, with claims brought in the United States, Canada or the United Kingdom excluded. The fact that you do the work from the Netherlands makes no difference. Give us your foreign clients when you apply and we will match the territory to them.
Is a data breach or ransomware covered?
Not on this policy. Professional indemnity is about a mistake in your service towards a client. Failure of your own systems, restoring your data, negotiating over ransomware and the duty to report a data breach belong on cyber insurance. Fines from regulators are not insurable on either policy. We combine both covers where that is needed.
What happens if I stop trading?
Then you need run-off cover. The policy pays claims made during the term. If the policy stops, a claim about old work is uninsured. Agree the run-off period at the moment you wind up, not afterwards. The same applies when you move to another insurer: make sure the retroactive date joins up with your earlier policy.
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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