Liability
- Cables and pipes
- Damage to crops or buildings
- Injury to bystanders
Seasonal peak · downtime · high value
Insuring a lifting and harvesting machine
A harvester or forage harvester has to do its work in a window of a few weeks, and the two things that ruin that window are a fire in the crop dust and a piece of metal in the rotor.
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- Personal 072 - 509 24 56, weekdays 9–17
Deze pagina in het Nederlands: Rooi- en oogstmachine verzekeren.
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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 your own premium with the calculator.
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.
In brief
Self-propelled combines, forage harvesters and beet and potato harvesters represent the highest value in the agricultural machinery fleet and run for only a limited number of weeks a year. The insurance combines own-damage cover for the machine with liability for the field and the road, and in many cases with a separate arrangement for downtime.
The claims pattern is seasonal and sharply defined: fire caused by accumulated dust and crop residue around the exhaust and turbo, and damage to the rotor or drum because a stone, a horseshoe or a piece of fencing is drawn in. Both happen at the busiest time of the year, when replacement machinery is scarce.
The transport movements are unusual here: wide and long machines on the public road, with the insurance obligation under Article 2 of the Dutch Motor Insurance Liability Act (WAM), exemptions and sometimes an escort. If a field fire spreads to a neighbouring plot or a wood, you are liable under Article 6:162 of the Dutch Civil Code. See also the plant and machinery insurance.
Harvesters: what is covered?
The structure of the cover in three parts, with an overview per situation below.
Own-damage cover
Damage, theft and usually inherent defect as well.
- Theft and vandalism
- Fire and storm
- Inherent defect and operating error
Extensions
What matters besides the machine itself.
- Attached parts
- Transport to the site
- Downtime and hired plant
What is covered
| Situation | Liability | Own-damage cover |
|---|---|---|
| Damage to crops, buildings or pipes and cables | Yes | No |
| Theft of the machine | No | Sometimes |
| Fire or storm damage | No | Yes |
| Inherent defect or operating error | No | Sometimes |
| Blades, teeth and tyres worn out | No | No |
| Deferred maintenance | No | No |
This overview is general in nature and is not personal advice. What is actually covered, including exclusions, limits and the excess, is set out in the policy conditions and the insurance card (verzekeringskaart) of the insurer; you receive both before you take out cover. Taking out cover without advice? Then read what execution only means for you.
Where things go wrong in practice
Four points that make the difference between a policy that pays out and one that does not.
Fire is the dominant risk here
Dry dust and crop residue build up around the exhaust system and in the engine bay. A single spark turns that into a burnt-out machine and a burning field. The own damage is covered, but insurers set conditions: extinguishers on board, blowing out the engine bay daily and sometimes an automatic extinguishing system. If it is established that the cleaning regime was neglected, payment is reduced or refused on grounds of negligence.
Foreign objects in the rotor
A stone, a piece of fencing or a broken tine in the chopping drum or the lifting mechanism wrecks blades, shear bars and sometimes the whole rotor. Many policies have a separate limit or an increased excessfor this, and some exclude internal damage caused by ingested material altogether. If you work with a metal detector on the intake, say so: it affects both acceptance and the assessment afterwards.
Downtime costs more than the repair
A harvester that breaks down in the last week of the harvest means a crop left standing or losing quality. That loss is business interruption and is not included in own-damage cover; only a separate section for hiring replacement machinery or business interruption cover picks it up. For contractors there is the added point that clients may put their crop losses to you, and that is pure financial loss, which falls outside cover on many liability policies.
What is structurally left out
Blades, shear bars, sieves, lifting belts and tracks are wearing parts and are not paid for anywhere. delays to the harvest, loss of crop quality and the crop inside the machine at the moment of the fire also stay outside own-damage cover. Deferred maintenance on bearings, belts and guards is a ground for exclusion in its own right. Keep the maintenance log for each season; on these machines it is the first thing asked for.
Theft and security
For higher values, insurers require a tracker and agreements on where the machine is kept outside working hours.
Wearing parts remain excluded everywhere
Blades, teeth, cutting edges, tracks and tyres are wearing parts and are not insured anywhere; only sudden damage is covered. Deferred maintenance is also a ground for exclusion. A demonstrable maintenance regime with a logbook is therefore not only good management but also strengthens your position in a claim.
What does your premium depend on?
- Replacement value and year of manufacture — Self-propelled harvesters represent the highest value in the fleet; this weighs most heavily in the premium.
- Crop and type of harvest — Dusty grain and maize work carries a different fire risk from lifting beet or potatoes in damp ground.
- Running hours per season — Contractors’ machines run many times the hours of a machine on a single farm and are rated accordingly.
- Fire prevention on board — The presence of extinguishers, an extinguishing system in the engine bay and a fixed cleaning regime.
- Transport on public roads — Width, number of journeys and the use of an escort or a transport chassis when moving between plots.
- Downtime provision required — A section for hiring replacement machinery or for business interruption raises the premium but covers the real seasonal risk.
Insurers weigh these details differently. That is why comparing pays off.
How we arrange it
- You request a quoteWe take stock of your situation, your risk and your 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.
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.
Frequently asked questions
The questions we are asked most often about this.
Is a field fire that spreads to the neighbour covered?
Damage to your own machine falls under own-damage cover; damage to the neighbour’s land, buildings or woodland falls under liability cover under Article 6:162 of the Dutch Civil Code. Insurers will assess whether you took the usual precautions: extinguishers on board, a clean engine bay and not working on in extreme fire risk. If those were missing, payment can be reduced.
What if a stone gets into the forage harvester?
That is internal damage caused by an ingested foreign object. Some policies cover it with an increased excess or a separate limit, others exclude it. Read this section before you sign, because on forage harvesters and lifters it is the most common expensive claim. The blades themselves are treated as wearing parts in any event and are not paid for.
Will replacement machinery be paid for during the harvest?
Only if a separate section has been included for it. Standard own-damage cover pays for repair or replacement of the machine, not for hiring a replacement or the loss caused by downtime. In a short harvest window that is precisely the difference that counts. Discuss in advance which period and which amount are realistic for your cropping plan.
Can my client recover his crop losses from me?
He can try. If you damage his crop or land with the machine, that is damage to property and is covered under liability. If, on the other hand, he claims only lost yield because you arrived late or broke down, that is pure financial loss without damage to property, and on most policies that falls outside cover. Set out your terms of delivery and limitations of liability in writing.
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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.
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This page was written and checked by an adviser at Finass Verzekert. Last updated on .
The information on this page is general in nature and is not personal advice.