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9,5/ Reviews

Insurance when working abroad via OOM

Anyone leaving to work abroad usually loses their Dutch health insurance, while the employer's duty of care travels along to the foreign workplace unchanged.

  • 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.

  • We compare the offerings of several insurers
  • An adviser checks whether the cover suits your situation
  • We arrange the switch, including cancellation

Request a quote

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

Working abroad affects two things at once. Your obligation to insure under the Zorgverzekeringswet (the Dutch Health Insurance Act) depends on living, or working subject to payroll tax, in the Netherlands. If that shifts, basic health insurance ends and the reimbursement that rests on it lapses as well. Within the EU an A1 certificate can keep Dutch social security running; outside it, almost never. Anyone who only discovers this with the first hospital bill pays it themselves.

At the same time the employer does not disappear from the picture. The duty of care under Article 7:658 of the Dutch Civil Code applies to a workplace in Riyadh or Lagos too, and under Article 7:611 of the Dutch Civil Code an employer is expected to make proper provision for employees travelling for work. An expatriation package is therefore more often an employer's decision than a choice made by the employee.

We first take stock of the country of work, the length of the posting and whether the family is going too, and then set OOM's cover alongside that of other providers. If it concerns a temporary trip rather than a posting, a travel insurance is the cheaper and more appropriate solution.

The same independent view, whatever insurer

We work with dozens of insurers and choose whichever fits your situation best — not whichever pays us the most. That means advice built around you, not around one brand.

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Through Finass or direct with OOM Verzekeringen?

The structure of the cover in three parts, with an overview per situation below.

Basic cover

The basic cover insures the core of your insurance when working abroad. We show what OOM and other insurers offer within it.

  • Injury to persons
  • Property damage to third parties
  • Employees included
  • Retroactive cover (prior risk)

Extended cover

On top of that to damage to third parties, employers' and product liability and damage during work at the client's premises.

  • Employers' liability at the client's premises
  • Product liability
  • Agency workers, interns & volunteers
  • Care, custody and control (property in your care)

Complete package

The most complete cover. We compare OOM's extended version with the market.

  • Environmental impairment (unforeseen, limited)
  • Retroactive cover (prior risk)
  • Higher sums insured

What we do

What we doAt FinassDirect with OOM Verzekeringen
Comparison across several insurersYesNo
Advice based on your own situationYesSometimes
One point of contact for claimsYesSometimes
Cancellation with your current insurer arrangedYesNo
We determine whether OOM Verzekeringen is the best choiceYesNo
Advice fees for you as a customerNoNo

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.

What does your premium depend on?

  • Country and region of work. The local cost level of medical care and how easily help can be reached determine most of the premium.
  • Length of the posting. A secondment of a few months is assessed differently from a posting of several years.
  • Nature of the work. Office work, construction site work, offshore work and security duties fall into different risk classes.
  • Age of the posted employee. Expected demand for medical care rises with age and feeds through into the rate.
  • Family members moving with you. A partner and children are insured person by person; school-age children raise a cover question of their own.
  • Area of cover and excess. Whether or not the United States and Canada are included, and the personal contribution chosen, shift the premium noticeably.

Insurers weigh these details differently. That is where your saving is.

How we arrange it

  1. You request a quoteWe take stock of your situation, your risk and your wishes.
  2. We compareseveral insurers, on premium as well as conditions.
  3. You receive a proposalWith an explanation of the differences and the exclusions.
  4. We arrange the switchIncluding cancellation, so there is no gap in cover.

Request a quote

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.

View the reviews at NH1816 · all reviews on our site

Where things go wrong in practice

Four points that make the difference between a policy that pays out and one that does not.

Your basic health insurance ends sooner than the posting does

The obligation under the Health Insurance Act stops as soon as you are no longer a resident or no longer pay Dutch payroll tax. If basic health insurance continues after that, you pay premium for cover to which you are no longer entitled. If you stop too early, a gap opens up. We set the end date of the Dutch policy and the start date of the international cover on the same day, and record that date in writing.

The duty of care travels to the foreign workplace

An employee injured on a construction site or installation abroad can hold their Dutch employer to account under Article 7:658 of the Dutch Civil Code. The fact that the local client set the safety rules does not release the employer from its own responsibility. Medical cover does not replace that liability, but it does prevent the discussion about who pays from starting while the employee is still in hospital.

Repatriation and evacuation have firm limits

Medical transport to the Netherlands takes place only where the treating doctor and the emergency assistance centre jointly consider it medically necessary; treatment that can wait until the planned return falls outside it. Work in areas subject to negative travel advice, war zones and evacuation for political reasons are excluded as standard. If you are going to such a region, report it in advance, because there is no cover to be bought afterwards.

What you declare in advance determines whether payment follows later

When you apply, the duty of disclosure under Article 7:928 of the Dutch Civil Code. A pre-existing condition, ongoing treatment or medication you fail to mention can be used by the insurer under Article 7:930 of the Dutch Civil Code to limit or refuse payment. The same applies to the nature of the work: offshore work, diving, working at height and motorised off-road transport are assessed differently from office work.

Retroactive cover (prior risk)

Retroactive cover (prior risk) Included for your staff during work.

Defence & legal costs

Frequently asked questions

This is what people ask us most.

Can I keep my Dutch health insurance during the posting?

Only as long as you remain liable to insure, that is to say as long as you are a resident or pay payroll tax in the Netherlands. With a secondment within the EU under an A1 certificate that is often the case. If you move outside the EU, the obligation ends and you must cancel your basic health insurance. Continuing to pay gives no entitlement to reimbursement.

Is my family covered if they move with me?

Only if you have your partner and children named on the policy separately. Family members are not automatically covered because you are. For children there is also the question of whether they will come to the Netherlands during school holidays. The policy must then also provide cover during a temporary stay in the country of origin.

Who takes this out: me or my employer?

Both occur. On a posting from a Dutch employer, the policy is usually in the company's name, because the duty of care under Article 7:658 of the Dutch Civil Code lies there and the costs are built into the expatriation allowance. If you work as a self-employed professional (zzp'er) for a foreign client, you take out the policy yourself and there is no employer arranging anything for you.

What if I have to work in a country subject to negative travel advice?

Report it before you leave. Travel to or stays in areas subject to orange or red travel advice are excluded on standard conditions, as are acts of war and armed conflict. Some insurers offer a separate clause on amended conditions. Without that agreement in advance, nothing can be arranged once the posting is under way.

Ready to compare?

Request a quote without obligation. We will look at which insurer best matches your activities and your risk.

Request a quote

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.