As a self-employed professional you are not just insuring a van, but the only means of transport with which you earn your turnover and for which no employer provides a safety net.
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.
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
A premium indication, not personal advice. Prefer to talk it through? Call 072 - 509 24 56.
In brief
Technically the policy is the same as that for a van in a larger company, but your position is different. There is no employer to absorb your injury, no colleague to take over the van and no second vehicle if this one spends a week at the repairer. Those three points determine which additions are worthwhile on a policy for the self-employed.
First decide whose name the vehicle goes in. With a sole trader that makes little difference to liability, because there is no legal entity in between. It does make a difference to the build-up of no-claims years: in the company name they are held in the company's name and cannot simply be taken over into private ownership when you stop.
If you also use the van privately, report it. Commuting, shopping and weekend use are not business use. A declaration that departs from practice is the first thing that is looked at when there is a claim.
The structure of the cover in three parts, with an overview per situation below.
Compulsory by law
Third-party liability
Damage you cause to others with the van.
Compulsory from registration onwards
A trailer while coupled
Also for private use
Most chosen
Third-party, fire and theft
Theft, break-in damage, fire, storm and glass.
Break-in damage to locks
Theft of the vehicle
Glass and stone chips
Declare separately
Contents and fit-out
Tools, materials and the fit-out in the load space.
Own goods in transit insurance
Racking and load floor
Roof rack and towbar
What is covered
Situation
Third-party liability
Third-party, fire and theft
Comprehensive
Collision with another vehicle
Yes
Yes
Yes
Break-in damage to doors and locks
No
Yes
Yes
Tools stolen from the load space
No
No
No
Damage you cause yourself while reversing
No
No
Yes
Racking system and load floor
No
Sometimes
Sometimes
Damage to third-party goods during loading and unloading
No
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.
Your own injury falls outside every motor policy
If you are injured on the way to a job, third-party liability cover pays the other party and not you. Unlike an employee, as a self-employed professional you cannot rely on the employer's obligations in Articles 7:658 and 7:611 of the Dutch Civil Code; your client is not your employer. Without disability insurance or occupants' insurance you bear the loss of income entirely yourself, while your fixed costs continue.
Work out what is really in your van
Machines, hand tools, measuring equipment, a stock of materials and tomorrow's job: add that up against replacement value, not against what you once paid for it. That content calls for own-account carriage insurance, because own-damage cover pays only for the vehicle. Note the requirement that goes with it: virtually every policy requires you to empty the van outside working hours or park it in a locked space. If you do not comply, that policy will not help you either.
Downtime costs more than the repair
With a van that spends two weeks at the repairer, your work comes to a standstill. So look not only at the premium but at the service when there is a claim: is a replacement vehicle insured, is that an equivalent van or a car with no load space, and how long does the arrangement run? For a self-employed person that is often the most important condition on the policy, and it is precisely the one that rarely appears in a premium comparison.
What is not covered
The following, among others, are outside the cover: tools and materials in the load space, even with comprehensive cover; your own loss of income after an accident or during repairs; and the fit-out you did not declare, such as racking, load floor and roof rack, which is then not paid for in the event of a total loss. Courier or delivery work that has not been reported, hiring the van out to a colleague and driving under the influence are also excluded, as is intent under Article 7:952 of the Dutch Civil Code.
Tools fall outside every car policy
What is in the load compartment is not part of the vehicle. Own-damage cover does not pay for its theft, not even under comprehensive cover. That calls for separate goods-in-transit insurance, with conditions attached: usually a locked garage, or emptying the van outside working hours.
A racking system, load floor, roof rack, tow bar or refrigeration unit raises the value but is not included in the list price. Without a declaration, only the bare vehicle is paid out in the event of a total loss, while the fit-out easily represents several thousand euros.
What does your premium depend on?
Registered keeper of the vehicle. Private or in the company's name, with consequences for where the no-claims years end up.
Your occupation. Installation, construction, landscaping or services give a different claims and break-in pattern.
Ratio of business to private use. Mixed use and commuting belong in the declaration, including with a commercial registration.
Annual mileage and area of operation. Regular jobs in the region weigh differently from driving across the country every day.
Overnight storage. On the street outside your home, on an enclosed site or in a garage or shed.
Replacement vehicle and excess. The arrangement for a replacement van and the excess you can afford to bear yourself.
Insurers weigh these details differently. That is where your saving is.
How we arrange it
You request a quoteWe take stock of your activities, turnover and 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.
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.
Do I register the van in my own name or in the business?
For liability it makes hardly any difference with a sole trader, because you and the business coincide in law. For the no-claims years it does: in the company name the business builds them up and you cannot simply take them into private ownership when you stop. For tax purposes VAT and benefit in kind come into play; have that choice discussed with your accountant before the registration is transferred.
Am I insured myself if I am injured?
Not on this policy. Third-party liability cover is there for the other party. Your own injury and the income you lose fall outside it. As a self-employed professional you have no employer bound by Article 7:658 of the Dutch Civil Code. That calls for disability insurance (AOV), possibly supplemented by occupants' insurance that pays regardless of who was at fault.
Do I get a replacement van after a claim?
Only if that is stated on the policy, and what it means varies widely. Some insurers supply an equivalent van, others a car in which your tools do not fit, and the period varies. Ask about this explicitly before you take out the policy; for a self-employed person with a single vehicle this condition often weighs more heavily than a difference in premium.
May I also use the van privately?
Yes, but declare it. A policy taken out for business use only, while you go out in the van at weekends, departs from the declaration. When there is a claim the insurer can adjust the payout. A commercial registration also carries its own tax conditions for private use; that stands apart from the insurer's view of it.
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.
