More insurance for self-employed professionals
Besides liability and income there is a second layer of cover. It is rarely compulsory, but it covers precisely the events that bring a sole trader business to a halt.
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- 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 first category concerns belongings. Tools that go into the van are insured on a tools insurance; business contents, stock and tenant's improvements at a fixed place on a business contents and goods insurance; mobile and self-propelled plant on plant and machinery insurance. If you carry your own goods by road, that is not covered by the motor policy but by own goods in transit insurance. On all these policies wear and inherent defect are excluded, and theft is only covered where there is demonstrable forced entry.
The second category concerns continuity and data. If your work stands still after a fire or a burglary, business interruption insurance compensates for the loss of turnover during an agreed indemnity period. In a hack, ransomware or a data breach, cyber insurance covers investigation, recovery and liability towards those whose data has been leaked. Administrative fines are not included, and neither is loss through a vulnerability you already knew about and left in place.
The third category concerns disputes and consequences for you personally. A legal expenses insurance for self-employed professionals pays the cost of legal proceedings, with a waiting period at the start and excluding disputes already running when the policy began. A personal accident insurance pays out on permanent injury or death, whoever is at fault, but excludes accidents during high-risk sports and under the influence.
This page deals with one situation. The full overview is on Compare personal liability insurance (AVP).
Insurance that matches your sector
Every sector carries its own risks. We translate those into cover that genuinely fits what you do day to day, rather than a standard package that just happens to apply to your business too.
Sectors
Tailored
CoverWhy 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 questions that determine whether additional cover is worthwhile or duplication.
What can you carry yourself without difficulty?
Insurance is meant for losses you cannot absorb out of your own resources. Replacing a laptop is usually manageable; three months without turnover is not. Put the risks in order of impact, not of likelihood, and insure first what would bring your business to an end.
Is it already included on another policy?
Double cover is more common than a gap. Electronics sometimes appears both on the business contents policy and on separate electronics cover, and a legal expenses module may already be included in a package. Where there is concurrent insurance usually only one insurer pays, so for the second premium you get nothing back.
Watch the periods, not the amounts
On business interruption insurance the indemnity period determines how long you are compensated, and on legal expenses insurance the waiting period determines whether a dispute that has just arisen counts. When it comes to it periods of that kind determine the outcome of a claim more often than the level of the sum insured.
Report a change here too
New equipment, a different storage location or work abroad affects these policies just as much as your liability cover. The duty of disclosure in Article 7:928 of the Dutch Civil Code and the consequence in Article 7:930 of the Dutch Civil Code apply to every insurance. Report changes through notifying a change.
What does your premium depend on?
- Value of the business assets: the total of tools, business contents and equipment
- Location and security: storage, locks and alarms determine the theft premium
- Indemnity period: the most important choice on business interruption
- Turnover and customer data: determines the size of the cyber risk
- Areas of law: debt collection, contracts or employment law included too
- Excess: chosen separately for each policy
Insurers weigh these details differently. That is where your saving is.
What is covered
| Situation | Third-party liability | Comprehensive |
|---|---|---|
| You lose control of the wheel on a slippery road and end up in the verge | No | Yes |
| A deer crossing the road runs into your company vehicle | No | Yes |
| You push over a parked scooter while parking | Yes | Yes |
| The mirrors on your van are kicked off overnight | No | Yes |
| The starter motor gives up and the van will not start | No | No |
| Your van fetches less in part exchange because it has a damage history | No | No |
Mechanical defects and loss of value stay outside every vehicle cover.
Frequently asked questions
This is what people ask us most.
Where do I start if the budget is limited?
With the risks that would end your business: liability for a large loss suffered by someone else and long-term inability to work. Equipment and legal expenses come afterwards, because you can usually carry those losses yourself for a while. It is a judgement per occupation: for a roofer liability weighs more heavily than for a copywriter, who is more likely to face a cyber risk.
Is cyber insurance worthwhile for a sole trader?
That depends on your data and on how much you depend on systems. If you work with client files, medical data or payments, the investigation, recovery and notification after a data breach are costs you cannot resolve yourself. If you work with hardly any data belonging to others, the risk is limited. Fines from a regulator stay outside the cover in both cases.
Does legal expenses insurance cover an unpaid invoice?
In business legal expenses cover, debt collection is often a separate module with its own threshold amount and sometimes a maximum number of cases per year. More important is the waiting period: a dispute that already existed or that arises within the waiting period is excluded. So take out the policy before there is a conflict, not afterwards.
Can I place all of this with one insurer?
Usually yes, in a package with one policy schedule and one renewal date. That keeps the administration clear and saves paperwork. The drawback is that you are tied to that one company's conditions. For a specialist risk, a separate policy with an insurer that knows the work is sometimes wiser.
Every situation is different. For these situations we have a separate page.
- Business interruption insurance by sectorThe main page
- Business insurance and what happens outside the premisesSections, risk address, motor vehicles
- Business insurance at a glanceLiability, assets, continuity
- Business insurance: what does that mean?Umbrella term, liability, business assets
- Business insurance tailored to your companyReview, insured capacity, sums insured
- What else needs arranging alongside the business car policyRoad risk, load, plant
- Business insurance: where to startContinuity, claims, staff, transport
- A package policy or separate policies as a self-employed professionalSections, renewal, coherence
- Cyber insurance for businessesRansomware, data breach, interruption