Which insurances are the most common?
More useful than a ranking is the question of why an insurance policy exists. Some are required by law, others are demanded by a third party, and a third group is voluntary but hard to do without.
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In brief
Two types of insurance are required by lawin the Netherlands. The first is health insurance: everyone who lives here or pays wage tax has to take out basic cover. The second is liability insurance for motor vehicles. Article 2 of the WAM requires the owner of a motor vehicle to have that cover, and that obligation continues for as long as the registration is in your name, even if the vehicle is not used. If you do not, a fine follows from the vehicle register, quite apart from the loss you risk yourself.
A second group is not required by law but contractual compulsory. A mortgage lender requires a buildings insurance on the security and sometimes term life cover. A landlord can require liability cover, a client can require professional indemnity insurance, and a professional body can make it a condition of registration. Those requirements are in the contract and not in the law, but they carry the same weight.
The third group is voluntary and contains the policy most households take out first: the personal liability insurance. The reason is set out in Article 6:162 of the Dutch Civil Code, the wrongful act: anyone who causes damage has to pay for it, and with injury that mounts up considerably. The law also has strict liabilities where fault is not required, such as Article 6:179 of the Dutch Civil Code for animals and Article 6:174 of the Dutch Civil Code for defects in a building. After that come home contents, car, travel and legal expenses.
This page deals with one situation. The full overview is on SME insurance package.
Independent, personal, sorted quickly
We compare your personal liability insurance (AVP) 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.
Personal liability insurance (AVP)
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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 observations about the policies almost everyone has.
The cheapest policy covers the largest amount
Liability for personal injury has no natural upper limit: loss of earning capacity, adapting a home and lifelong care all add up. That is precisely why this is the cover on which you do not economise with a high excess. When comparing, look at the family cover, the care, custody and control arrangement and how a guest or babysitter is treated.
Double cover is more common than a gap
Legal expenses cover is sometimes partly included in a motor policy, travel cover can come with a credit card, and a bicycle can be on both the home contents policy and a separate policy. Being insured twice does not give a double payment; Article 7:960 of the Dutch Civil Code does not allow you to profit from a loss. So go through your policies as a whole.
The self-employed and employees insure themselves differently
An employee has continued payment of wages during illness and a pension scheme through the employer. A self-employed person does not. On top of that come covers an employee does not need, such as disability insurance and a public and employers' liability insurance. A private policy does not cover acts carried out in a profession or business.
What no policy covers
Excluded everywhere are: damage caused by intent or wilful recklessness (Article 7:952 of the Dutch Civil Code), war risks and nuclear reaction, and the consequences of wear, deferred maintenance and design faults. Also flooding from a primary flood defence and administrative fines cannot be insured. Anyone who knows those four categories understands the greater part of refusals.
What does your premium depend on?
- The number of policies you hold: determines the size of any package discount
- Property and living situation: owned or rented, with or without a vehicle
- Household composition: determines the scope of the family covers
- Profession or entrepreneurship: the self-employed need their own set of covers
- Excess chosen: set separately for each policy
- Claims history: claims reported and no-claims years count
Insurers weigh these details differently. That is where your saving is.
What is covered
| Situation | Liability | Home contents |
|---|---|---|
| Your child kicks a ball through the neighbour's window | Yes | No |
| After a burglary your laptop and jewellery have gone | No | Yes |
| While visiting friends you drop a friend's phone | Provided that | No |
| Your dog bites the postal worker at the garden gate | Yes | No |
| Your dishwasher leaks and damages your own parquet floor | No | Provided that |
| You damage a customer's equipment while at work | No | No |
If you do not know which section responds, report the event to either one; insurers pass it on internally.
Frequently asked questions
This is what people ask us most.
Which insurance do you take out first?
For almost every household that is personal liability insurance (AVP). The premium is low and the loss it covers can be unaffordable. After that comes the cover that suits your largest asset: home contents for a tenant, buildings and contents for a home you own, and the compulsory cover as soon as a motor vehicle is in your name.
Is legal expenses insurance necessary?
That depends on your situation. Anyone who buys a home, works as an employee or often deals with suppliers runs a real risk of a dispute. Do watch out for the waiting period and for the exclusion of disputes that were already running or foreseeable; taking out a policy once the dispute exists is pointless.
What happens if I am not insured when I should be?
With an uninsured motor vehicle a fine follows based on the RDW's records, and the Waarborgfonds Motorverkeer pays victims' losses, which are then recovered from you. Without basic health insurance you first receive a reminder and then a fine, after which you can be insured automatically at a higher premium.
How do I know whether I have something twice?
Put the policy schedules side by side and look for sections that appear in more than one policy: legal expenses, personal accident, luggage and special possessions. Then look in the policy conditions for the contribution provision, which governs which insurer takes precedence. We carry out that review for your whole package if you wish.
Every situation is different. For these situations we have a separate page.
- Compare personal liability insurance (AVP)The main page
- Does everyone have insurance?Compulsory, voluntary, uninsured
- Which two types of insurance are compulsory?Health insurance, third-party motor liability ·. The rest is contractual
- Insurance in the NetherlandsCompulsory, customary, supervision
- Which insurances are compulsory in the Netherlands?Two by law, by contract, by profession
- Which insurance is compulsory?Statutory obligation, contract, professional rule
- Which insurance policies are compulsory in the Netherlands?Health insurance, third-party motor liability ·. A mortgage requirement
- Which insurance is recommended?Liability, home contents, legal expenses
- Which insurance is compulsory?Registration, Article 2 WAM, health insurance