Actual value
- Not capped per kilogram
- Regardless of who is liable
- Including freight and costs
Transport insurance for parcel services
In parcel carriage the question is not whether consignments disappear, but from what point that is no longer a business risk.
- several insurers compared objectively
- 9.5 customer rating for a new policy
- AFM licence 12016589
- Personal 072 - 509 24 56, weekdays 9–17
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Work out for yourself what it would cost.
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.
- Independent advice
- Several insurers
- Switching arranged
- Help with claims
In brief
A parcel service handles so many packages that loss is not an incident but a percentage. Every sorting operation, every handover between depots and every delivery at the door adds a chance of a consignment going missing or being damaged. That background noise is not an insurable risk: an insurer covers uncertain events, not consistent shrinkage you can calculate yourself. Such loss belongs in your pricing, not in the premium.
What can be insured is the event that breaks the pattern: a van stolen in its entirety, a fire in the depot, a trailer overturning with a full load. In those losses a large number of consignments is lost at once, and that is exactly what a goods policy is designed for. The sum insured therefore follows not from the value per parcel but from the maximum value per vehicle and per location.
If you work with individual high-value urgent consignments rather than with volume, look at transport insurance for courier services.
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What does transport insurance for parcel services cover?
The structure of the cover in three parts, with an overview per situation below.
Liability
What a carrier bears at most.
- CMR: 8.33 SDR per kilo
- AVC: € 3.40 per kilo
- Rarely the actual value
Type of cover
From limited to all risks.
- All external perils
- Limited perils
- Storage in transit
What is covered
| Situation | Carriers' liability | Goods in transit |
|---|---|---|
| Damage from an accident, up to the weight limit | Yes | Yes |
| Damage above the weight limit | No | Yes |
| Theft of the cargo | Sometimes | Yes |
| Damage with no identifiable fault | No | Yes |
| Storage during the journey | No | Sometimes |
| Inherent defect or inadequate packaging | 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.
What does your premium depend on?
- Number of consignments a year. The volume determines how often an event can statistically occur.
- Maximum value per vehicle. The amount that can be lost in one go if a single van is stolen.
- Maximum value per depot. The peak stock in a hub, including the rush around the holidays, determines the limit for the location.
- Level of the excess. A high excess per event keeps consistent shrinkage outside the policy and brings the premium down.
- Use of subcontractors. Driving with permanent drivers of your own gives a different picture from a changing pool of charter hauliers.
- Security of depots and vehicles. CCTV, access control and tracking systems count in the underwriting and in the conditions.
Insurers weigh these details differently. That is where your saving is.
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.
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.
Where things go wrong in practice
Four points that make the difference between a policy that pays out and one that does not.
Consistent shrinkage belongs in your margin
Work out how many consignments you lose each year without any identifiable cause and build that amount into your rates. Insurers exclude shortages without a demonstrable event, and with reason: without a cause there is no distinction between theft, a wrong scan and an administrative error. An excess per event that is high enough filters out that noise and keeps the premium in proportion to the real risk.
Insure the event, not the parcel
Establish the maximum that can be in one van, in one trailer and in one depot at any one time, and set the sum insured accordingly. With a parcel service that amount is rarely the value of an average consignment times the number of packages, because the peak load around the holidays differs sharply from the annual average. Declare those peaks in advance; cover calculated on the average falls short precisely in December.
The scanning chain is your file
In a network with several handover points, the last recorded scan determines who had the parcel when it disappeared. If a scan is missing at the handover to a depot or a subcontractor, it cannot be established where it went wrong and there is therefore no possibility of recovery. Check that every handover has a scanning moment and that the data is kept long enough to support a claim.
The sorting centre is not carriage
Parcels lying in a hub or depot are stationary and therefore come under storage cover and not under transit cover. Fire, water damage or a break-in at the depot calls for a separate arrangement with its own limit per location. If you work with subcontractors driving their own vehicles, bear in mind Article 6:171 of the Dutch Civil Code: your client can hold you responsible for the mistakes of those independent contractors.
Frequently asked questions
This is what people ask us most.
Can daily loss of individual parcels be insured?
No. Consistent shrinkage is predictable and therefore not an uncertain event; insurers exclude it under the heading of shortages without a demonstrable cause. Build that loss into your rates. What can be insured is the event in which a large batch disappears at once, such as a stolen van or a fire in the depot.
What is a shortage without a demonstrable cause?
A consignment that was loaded according to the records but did not arrive, without any identifiable event: no break-in, no accident, no witness. Because the cause remains unknown, the insurer cannot establish whether there was a covered event. Virtually every policy therefore excludes this category expressly.
Are parcels in the sorting centre included?
Not as a matter of course. As soon as packages are lying in a hub or depot, it is no longer carriage but storage, with its own cover and its own limit per location. Declare the maximum value per depot, including the peak around the holidays, and check that fire, water and break-in are included in that cover.
Am I liable for my subcontractors?
Often yes, towards your client. Under Article 6:171 of the Dutch Civil Code, the party that engaged you can be held responsible for the mistakes of independent contractors working on your instructions. So record what liability the charter haulier bears himself, ask for a certificate of insurance and make sure the handover moments are recorded with a scan.
Every situation is different. For these situations we have a separate page.
- Compare goods in transit insuranceThe main page
- Transport insurance for electronicsHigh value, low weight, theft
- Transport insurance for courier servicesMany consignments, high value, speed
- Goods in transit insuranceActual value, route, who insures
- International goods in transitCMR, multimodal, countries
- Transport insurance for works of artIrreplaceable, valuation, condition report
- Transport insurance for building materialsBulk, unloading, weather
- Transport insurance for SMEsOwn transport, subcontracted, the trade-off
- Transport insurance for foodstuffsSpoilage, hygiene, rejection
Read more
Ready to compare?
Request a quote without obligation. We will look at which insurer best matches your activities and your risk.
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.