Change in risk · date of amendment · premium adjustment
Reporting a change
A policy is a snapshot of your situation. If that situation changes, the policy schedule has to follow. Here you can read what to report, when it takes effect and what goes wrong if a change is left unreported.
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In brief
Not every change affects your policy, but more of them do than you might think. On an personal liability insurance the household make-up determines who is an insured person: if you move in together, marry or separate, the circle of insured persons changes and sometimes the premium as well. On a home contents insurance the address, the type of construction and the level of security all count. On a car insurance it is about the registration number, the regular driver, the annual mileage and where the vehicle is kept. And on a buildings insurance the use of the premises is decisive.
What you tell the insurer when you apply falls under the duty of disclosure in Article 7:928 of the Dutch Civil Code. During the term of the policy, almost all policies also include a provision that you must report a change in risk . If you do not, the insurer can rely on Article 7:930 of the Dutch Civil Codewhen you claim: it may reduce the payment in proportion to the premium it would have charged, or refuse it altogether if it would not have accepted the risk had it known the true situation. If you are unsure whether something is worth reporting, report it and leave the assessment to the insurer.
An amendment works forwards, not backwards. The new cover applies from the date the insurer confirms, and an event that took place before that remains subject to the old situation. If you reduce a sum insured or drop a section, the premium is adjusted from the date of amendment. If it is a claim rather than a change, use report a claim; for ongoing questions about your policy you can contact our customer service.
This page deals with one situation. The full overview is on Compare personal liability insurance (AVP).
The changes that most often lead to discussion
Four situations in which the policy quietly stops matching what is actually happening.
Household make-up and who counts as an insured person
An AVP does not name you alone, but a defined circle: your partner, your children living at home and sometimes a child studying away from home, on the conditions set out in your policy. After a divorce a former partner is no longer an insured person, even if the premium is still being taken from a joint account. Death, moving in together and a child moving out are therefore amendments, not administrative details.
A different use of your home
Standing empty, letting a room or the whole house, and a house for sale that you no longer live in: these are the classic cases in which the cover changes. In the case of vacancy most policies limit cover to fire, storm and impact; water and vandalism damage then falls outside it. Private letting is as a rule excluded on an ordinary buildings and home contents policy and calls for a different type of policy.
A different use of your car
A private car used for business or for paid passenger transport falls outside the cover of a private motor policy. The same applies to a second driver who in fact covers most of the kilometres: that person is the regular driver and belongs on the policy schedule. If it emerges after a claim that the actual driver was a young, undeclared one, a reduction in the payment or a refusal almost always follows.
Moving house is more than a change of address
A new address means a different chance of burglary, a different type of construction and often a different contents value. Arrange the overlap period deliberately: the buildings insurance on the old house runs until transfer before the notary, while the new policy has to start as soon as you have the key. Also report building work during the term, because a building site changes the risk of a home.
What does your premium depend on?
- Address and postcode — determines the rating for burglary and water risk
- Household composition — single or family determines the group of insured persons
- Use and purpose — occupied, let, standing empty or partly business use
- Driver and mileage — the age of the regular driver carries a lot of weight
- Sums insured — rebuild value and contents value after building work
- Excess — an adjusted excess is settled from the date of amendment
Insurers weigh these details differently. That is why comparing pays off.
Will the claim be paid?
| Situation | Change notified | Not declared |
|---|---|---|
| Your nineteen-year-old daughter now covers most of the kilometres and causes a collision | Yes | No |
| A burglary at the house you left three months ago and which has stood empty since | Provided that | No |
| Water damage in the room you have recently let to a student | Provided that | No |
| The neighbours claim for a window your former partner broke, years after the divorce | No | No |
| Fire in a house whose extension was never included in the rebuild value | Yes | Provided that |
| Theft from your car, which since the move has been parked on the street instead of in a garage | Yes | Provided that |
Keep the insurer's written confirmation; when you claim it is that date that counts, not your telephone call.
Frequently asked questions
The questions we are asked most often about this.
Does a change take effect retrospectively?
No. The insurer confirms a date of amendment and the new situation applies from that moment. You cannot bring an event that has already happened under wider cover after the fact. So report a change before it takes effect: before the keys are handed over, before the first drive in the new car and before building work starts.
What happens if I forget to report a change?
That depends on the consequence. If the premium would have been higher, the insurer pays proportionally under Article 7:930 of the Dutch Civil Code. If it would not have accepted the risk at all, there is no payment and it can cancel the policy. Where you concealed something you knew or ought to have known, the consequence is more serious than for an honest mistake.
May the insurer raise the premium after my change?
Yes, if the risk increases the insurer may adjust the premium or the conditions, and where a risk does not fit its acceptance policy it may end the cover. The reverse applies too: if the risk becomes smaller, the premium is reduced from the date of amendment. If the insurer changes the conditions to your disadvantage, the policy normally gives you the right to cancel.
Do I also have to report changes that have nothing to do with the premium?
A change of postal address and a new account number do not affect the cover, but do report them so that renewal documents and any reminder reach you. Unpaid premium leads to suspension of cover. What does affect the cover is set out in your policy conditions under change in risk; that list is your yardstick.
