Driving more kilometres than you are insured for
The annual mileage you declare is not an estimate nobody looks at. It is an underwriting detail, and when you claim the odometer reading is compared with what you entered at the time.
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In brief
On the application you enter how many kilometres you expect to drive each year. Insurers work with bandsfor this, for example up to twelve thousand, up to twenty thousand and above that. That declaration falls under the duty of disclosure in Article 7:928 of the Dutch Civil Code: you state truthfully what you know or ought to know. Anyone who deliberately chooses a lower band when taking out cover in order to bring down the premium provides incorrect information about a detail on which acceptance is based.
If you start driving more during the term of the policy, something else is going on: not an incorrect declaration, but a change in risk. Think of a new job further away, a second home address or the loss of a second car in the family. Report that, just as you report a move or a new regular driver. The premium is then adjusted from that moment and the cover remains in place. A notifying a change takes less time than an argument after the event.
If nothing happens and a loss follows, Article 7:930 of the Dutch Civil Codeapplies. The insurer considers what it would have done with the correct details. If the premium would have been higher, the payment is reduced in proportion. If it would not have accepted the risk at all, the payment can lapse. With an ordinary overrun of a band, proportionate reduction is the usual consequence. If the declaration on the application turns out to have been deliberately incorrect, your position is worse.
This page deals with one situation. The full overview is on Compare car insurance.
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Where things go wrong in practice
Four moments at which the difference between the declaration and reality becomes visible.
The odometer reading is a means of checking
With an own-damage claim the loss adjuster records the mileage, and that reading is also known from MOT records and servicing. A car that according to the policy covers ten thousand kilometres a year but has done sixty thousand in three years immediately raises a question. The burden of proof that use was different from what was declared then becomes hard to rebut.
Commuting and business trips
It is not only the number of kilometres that counts, but their nature too. Business trips on your own account, delivery work, courier services or paid passenger transport are different risks from private use and are often excluded for as long as they are not stated on the policy schedule. If you drive for work, look at business car insurance.
Driving less than declared
That is not a cover problem, but it is a missed saving. Insurers do not adjust downwards of their own accord. If your commute disappears or you retire, pass on the new expectation. The same applies if you switch to an electric car that you mainly use for short local journeys.
What is not covered even with a correct declaration
Mileage changes nothing about the standard exclusions. Damage caused by wear, a mechanical defect or deferred maintenance remains outside own-damage cover, even if you stayed neatly within your band. The same applies to damage during races and speed trials and to use of the car in committing a crime.
What does your premium depend on?
- Declared annual mileage: the band you fall into helps determine the basic premium
- The purpose of use: private, commuting, business or carriage of goods
- The number of drivers of the same vehicle: more drivers usually means more kilometres
- Recording of the odometer reading: some policies work with periodic declarations or telematics
- The region where you mainly drive: city kilometres count differently from motorway kilometres
- Type of cover and excess: with own-damage cover the mileage declaration carries more weight
Insurers weigh these details differently. That is where your saving is.
What is covered
| Situation | Third-party liability | Own-damage cover |
|---|---|---|
| You cause a rear-end collision while you are five thousand kilometres above your band | Yes | Provided that |
| You deliberately declared too low a band on the application and write your car off | Yes | No |
| You reported your new job a hundred kilometres away and have an accident a month later | Yes | Yes |
| You deliver meals in the evening and hit a cyclist during one of those runs | Yes | No |
| Your partner now drives most of the kilometres and causes a collision | Yes | Provided that |
| You are hit by a driver who leaves the scene while your odometer is far above the declaration | No | Provided that |
The third-party liability section stands towards the victim. The insurer can afterwards recover the amount paid from you.
Reviewed by the advisory team of Finass Verzekert · LinkedIn
Finass Advies B.V. · AFM licence 12016589 · Chamber of Commerce 37131781
AFM licence for: Adviseren en bemiddelen in schadeverzekeringen particulier, Adviseren en bemiddelen in schadeverzekeringen zakelijk
Last reviewed on
This page was written and reviewed by advisers of a firm licensed by the AFM (Wft). Advice and policies are always handled by an adviser, never automatically.
Frequently asked questions
This is what people ask us most.
I have exceeded the band this year. Do I have to report that?
Yes, pass it on as soon as you see that your use differs structurally. The insurer adjusts the premium from the moment you report it and the cover continues unchanged. If you wait until there is a claim, the assessment is made under Article 7:930 of the Dutch Civil Code and the payment can be reduced in proportion.
Will my claim then not be paid at all?
Usually it will be, but less. The insurer calculates what premium would have applied at the actual mileage and reduces the payment in the same proportion. Complete loss of the payment mainly occurs where the company would not have accepted the risk with the correct details, or where there was an intention to deceive on the application.
Does the third-party liability cover change too if I drive too many kilometres?
Towards the victim the liability cover stands. That follows from the structure of the WAM: an injured party should not suffer because of a dispute between you and your insurer. The company can, however, afterwards recover the amount paid from you in whole or in part, depending on how serious the incorrect declaration was.
Is a pay-per-kilometre policy with telematics sensible?
That depends on your use. If you demonstrably drive little, settling on actual kilometres can work out well. Do look at the conditions: how is the reading measured, what happens if the measurement fails, and what rate applies above the agreed limit. We set those conditions alongside the ordinary banded policies.
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