Terminology · print-ready file · revision
Professional indemnity insurance (BAV) for a translation agency
A translation error only becomes expensive once it has been multiplied: in a print run, in a contract, or in a set of instructions that travels with the product.
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Deze pagina in het Nederlands: Beroepsaansprakelijkheidsverzekering voor een vertaalbureau.
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 for yourself what it would cost.
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- 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
What goes wrong is almost always small and travels far: a negative that flips round in a contract clause, a unit that is not converted in technical documentation, a warning in a package leaflet that comes out weaker than the original, a currency or a deadline that is wrong in a tender document. The client's loss then consists of reprinting, relabelling, recertification or an agreement that works out differently from what was intended. That is pure financial loss, which is what this policy is for.
Your process is your defence. The standard of Article 7:401 of the Dutch Civil Code is filled in, in this industry, with translation plus revision by a second translator, an agreed terminology list and the client's written approval of the proof. If the revision round is missing although you sold it, your position is weak. For the mistakes of your freelance translators you are liable towards the client under Article 6:76 of the Dutch Civil Code, even where you did nothing to the text yourself.
Two items are often confused. The cost of retranslating and repaying your invoice is your own performance and is not insured. The costs the client incurs on top of that, such as a second print run or withdrawing packaging from circulation, are in principle covered. For damage to property or injury, for example during work on site, you need a public and employers' liability insurance needed.
This page deals with one situation. The full overview is on Compare professional indemnity insurance (BAV).
What to look out for
Four points that make the difference in a translation agency between a correction and a claim.
The moment a file goes to print
As long as a text is still being worked on, a mistake costs a correction. Once the file goes to the printer or into production, the same mistake costs a print run. Record who releases the final version and have the client approve the proof in writing. That approval shifts part of the risk and is the first document called for when a claim arises.
Freelancers and post-editing
If you work with a regular pool of self-employed translators, check whether they are included as co-insured or whether you require a policy of their own. If you use machine translation with post-editing, say so in the quotation. Delivering raw machine output where the client expected a full translation is a failure that is hard to defend.
Confidentiality of the source text
Contracts, annual figures and patent applications that pass through a public translation engine leave your control. That affects both your confidentiality arrangements and the GDPR where personal data are involved. Set out in your working instructions which tools are permitted. The costs of a data breach belong on a cyber insurance.
What is excluded
Excluded are intent and wilful recklessness (Article 7:952 of the Dutch Civil Code), fines and penalty payments, repayment of your fee and redoing your own work, liability arising solely from a penalty clause or guarantee, and usually also claims about copyright infringement in the text you supplied.
What does your premium depend on?
- Annual turnover: the usual basis for agencies
- Subject areas: medical, legal and technical work weighs more heavily
- Sworn translations: deeds and official documents carry heavier consequences
- Number of freelance translators: and whether they are named as co-insured on the policy
- Revision process: a recorded four-eyes principle works in your favour
- Territorial scope and sum insured: foreign clients and the maximum per claim
Insurers weigh these details differently. That is where your saving is.
What is covered
| Situation | AVB | BAV |
|---|---|---|
| A negative flips round in a contract clause and your client is bound by an obligation it did not want | No | Yes |
| A tender is declared invalid because a deadline in the tender document was translated incorrectly | No | Yes |
| Your client's own customer brings a claim against you directly over the manual you translated | No | Provided that |
| Your project manager knocks a cup over the client's laptop during a meeting | Yes | No |
| A client refuses to pay because he finds the style of the translation unsuitable | No | No |
| A server failure at your end causes three deadlines to be missed and the client misses his market launch | No | No |
Dissatisfaction and delay are not professional errors. Only when the text itself is incorrect does the BAV come into play.
Frequently asked questions
This is what people ask us most.
Is the reprint of a brochure containing our error covered?
The extra printing costs your client incurs are the client's loss and in principle qualify for payment. Retranslating and repaying your own invoice do not: that is putting your own performance right. With large print runs the difference between those two items varies widely, so record the heads of loss separately from the outset.
The client approved the proof. Are we still liable?
Approval does not rule out liability, but it does change the picture. The client must complain within a reasonable time of discovery. That follows from Article 6:89 of the Dutch Civil Code. His own checking may also count as contributory fault under Article 6:101 DCC. A mistake that only a specialist translator could have spotted, however, remains your responsibility.
We use machine translation with post-editing. Does that change the cover?
The cover does not change, but the assessment of your care does. What counts is whether the level delivered matches what you agreed and whether the post-editing was actually carried out. Describe the method used in your quotation. Assurances that the work will be error-free fall outside the cover as guarantees.
Are our freelance translators co-insured?
Only if the policy schedule says so. Without that entry you are liable to your client for their mistakes but have no cover for it, and you are left to recover from the translator. Make a deliberate choice: co-insure them at a higher premium, or require a policy of their own by contract and check it annually.
Read more
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