In a fire, the damage often adds up quickly. Not only to your own home, but also, for example, to the neighbours' home. Although in the case of a fire we immediately think of the buildings insurer, the home contents insurer and even the liability insurer also play a role. And that has a lot to do with the particularly complicated liability rules for fire damage. This page describes the situation in the Netherlands.
General rule: whoever makes a mistake has to pay
With fire damage, too, the general rule applies that whoever makes a mistake or is negligent and thereby causes damage must compensate that damage. That is also the case when such a mistake or negligence causes a fire. Think, for example, of a wrong manoeuvre in traffic, after which the car crashes and causes a fire. The driver who makes the mistake is then liable and their third-party liability (WA) insurer will pay for the fire damage to third parties. The casco insurance will in turn pay for the damage to the driver's own car.
This reasoning also applies to other situations, for example when someone makes a mistake while carrying out their professional work and causes a fire. The situation of a house fire, however, deserves a little extra explanation.
Liability for fire damage to your own home
Who is liable for the fire damage depends on the situation. When a fire breaks out in an owner's home, the owner must in principle bear the damage themselves. This can only be departed from when they can prove that someone else is responsible for the fire damage.
This rule also applies when the home is rented out. Of course, that does not mean that the landlord is always liable, because they can still prove the opposite. If the report of the fire brigade shows that the fire was caused by a cigarette on the carpet or another mistake by the tenant, then the tenant will be liable. But what if the report indicates that it was a short circuit or a structural problem? Then the damage is for the landlord's account. In other words, when the cause of the fire is structural or when the cause is unknown, the landlord is always responsible.
Insurance for fire damage to a rented home
In any case, the landlord is obliged to take out buildings insurance. The buildings insurance will pay for the rebuilding of the home. Some buildings insurance policies also pay extra costs, such as salvage costs (bereddingskosten), costs of a counter-assessment (contra-expertise), costs of storing the contents et cetera. What the buildings insurance does or does not pay for differs from policy to policy. That is why comparing buildings insurance policies is very important.
It is, however, the case that buildings insurance will never pay for damage to the contents. After all, that is what home contents insurance is for. Home contents insurance can be taken out by the tenant, who in this way protects their personal belongings.
Liability for fire damage to homes caused by a third party
In the situation above, it could also be that the fire brigade's report shows that the fire was started deliberately, for example by the tenant's ex-boyfriend. Then the ex-boyfriend is of course liable. That is also the case, for example, when a handyman from a nearby company has been negligent and a fire breaks out as a result. After all, it is enough that someone made a mistake or was negligent; they do not have to act deliberately.
In these cases the insured person is safe in any event. In principle, the buildings insurance will pay for the damage, but it will then try to recover that damage from the liable party. Whether or not that succeeds is not important for the insured person, because they will receive compensation anyway.
Incidentally, the reasoning above also applies to companies that protect their business premises with buildings insurance.
Fire damage as a result of a fire at the neighbours'
Sometimes a fire is not the result of your own mistake or that of the tenant, but a fire breaks out at the neighbours'. In such a case your own home can still suffer damage, for example because the fire spreads or because there is smoke and extinguishing damage. Then the neighbours, or for example the ex-boyfriend who is liable towards the neighbours, are liable for the damage caused to other injured parties.
However, if the injured party has buildings insurance, their buildings insurance will again pay for the damage. The injured party's buildings insurer will, however, again try to recover the damage. Does the injured party's buildings insurer approach the neighbour? Then the neighbour, in the best case for themselves, has their own fire insurance or personal liability insurance (AVP) that takes care of everything. Everything is then settled neatly between the insurers and nobody notices anything. What if the neighbour has no insurance? Then they risk having to pay everything back to the insurer themselves.
Who is responsible for the fire safety of an apartment?
When an apartment complex is ablaze, it is often quite a job to find out who is responsible for all that damage. There is often a combination of circumstances. For example, the building was not fire-safe, but a tenant caused the fire. Liability for fire safety is quite complicated. Below we list the rules and explain how the liability of the various parties is arranged.
Rules on fire safety
The Buildings Decree (Bouwbesluit) is of course an important guideline when constructing fire-safe buildings. It sets out a number of conditions that living spaces, such as an apartment, must meet in order to be fire-safe. These are three groups of conditions.
In the first place, the outbreak of a fire must be prevented. If there is a fire anyway, the second condition is that the spread of the fire must be prevented. Third, it must be possible to escape from a fire. There are various ways of meeting this. Think, for example, of emergency exits, fire escapes, fire ladders and so on.
We will leave out a full list of all the technical requirements here. Nevertheless, they are of course important, because failing to meet these requirements constitutes a fault. And if damage results from such a fault, such as a fire that affects the apartment of another owner, this of course means that the party that made the fault is also liable.
Liability of the VvE
In principle, every owner is personally liable for the fire safety of their living space. It can happen, however, that a fire breaks out because the building of the apartment complex itself has defects. That will be the case, for example, if the owners' association (vereniging van eigenaren, VvE) has not maintained the fire protection system for years. Then there is a fault and therefore also liability.
In addition, there may be strict liability (kwalitatieve aansprakelijkheid), for which no fault is required. The possessor of a defective building is then liable simply because they are the possessor (Article 6:174 of the Dutch Civil Code, Burgerlijk Wetboek or BW), just as a dog's owner is liable for their dog if the dog takes itself for a walk. Here, a victim therefore does not have to show that the owner, or in the case of an apartment complex the apartment owners, made a mistake. It is enough to prove that it was not fire-safe, for example because the fire doors did not work.
The VvE is a legal entity (Article 5:124 BW) that manages the common parts (Article 5:126 BW), but the building does not belong to the VvE. The building is the joint property of the apartment owners, who each hold a share (Article 5:106(4) BW). For liability for the building itself, we therefore end up with the apartment owners as co-possessors. Towards the victim they are jointly and severally liable (Article 6:180(1) BW); between themselves, the damage is as a rule divided according to their shares.
Liability of the owner
Every owner is responsible for their own apartment. When a fire breaks out in the apartment, for example because an owner falls asleep and a cigarette end sets the carpet ablaze, the owner is liable for the damage to the apartment complex and to the private apartments. With a fire in one apartment the damage often quickly becomes very large, so it is very important that the owner has good insurance. Often they do not have to arrange this themselves, but rely on the VvE for it.
Mandatory smoke detectors
The owner of the home is obliged to install smoke detectors in the home. If the home is rented out, the landlord must do this. In an owners' association, it is the individual owner who must install smoke detectors in their own home. In the communal area, smoke detectors are not mandatory, but they are advisable.
As the owner of the home, you are obliged to install a smoke detector on every floor. The obligation applies to every floor with a kitchen, bedroom or living room. In other words, in a basement or an attic without a kitchen, bedroom or living room this is not mandatory. The smoke detector is preferably fitted to the ceiling in the hall, at least 50 cm away from a wall and at least 30 cm away from a lamp. Also test the smoke detector regularly.
Liability of the landlord
The landlord is the owner of the apartment. As the owner of the apartment and a member of the VvE, they are responsible for fire safety. As a result, the landlord can be liable for fire damage. That is certainly the case when the rented property was not fire-safe. Even if there is no fault, the landlord can still be liable as (co-)possessor, but only when the building does not meet the requirements that may be expected of it and therefore poses a danger (Article 6:174 BW).
They can, however, shift the liability to the tenant if they can prove that the tenant made a mistake. In such a case there is nothing wrong with the fire safety, but the fire happened, for example, because the tenant made a mistake while flambéing next to the deep-fat fryer. It is then only logical that the VvE and the landlord are not liable. There can, of course, still be shared liability between the VvE and the tenant, for example because the tenant caused the fire but the building itself was also not fire-safe.
Insurance for fire and fire safety
In practice, the owner rarely has to take out buildings insurance themselves. The deed of division (splitsingsreglement) determines who is responsible for insuring the building on behalf of the apartment owners jointly (Article 5:112(1)(d) BW). Usually it is the VvE that takes out the buildings insurance for the entire building, including the private apartments. In practice, the owner does of course still pay for the buildings insurance, but through the monthly or annual amount paid to the VvE.
For the owner of a private apartment, it is important to be very alert, however. A dormant VvE may not take out insurance, and then the owner really must play it safe themselves. The content of the policy also plays a role. After all, some buildings insurance policies contain an exclusion for own fault. The consequence is that if one owner starts a fire themselves, the insurance will not pay anything. Not even to the other owners who did nothing wrong at all! Such situations can be prevented by including a so-called apartment clause (appartementsclausule) in the policy. The owner can also simply take out their own buildings insurance to protect themselves against such situations. In any case, this obligation lies with the VvE or with the owner, but never with the tenant. The tenant never has to take out buildings insurance.
Buildings insurance will of course only pay for damage to the buildings and not, for example, to the furniture or the jewellery in an apartment. For that, the resident needs home contents insurance. Every resident or tenant can take out such home contents insurance themselves. The landlord never has to take out home contents insurance for their tenant.
Exclusions in buildings insurance
Although buildings insurance will in many cases simply pay for fire damage, that will certainly not always be the case. For example, buildings insurance will not pay for fire damage if the insured person deliberately causes the fire, is reckless, or when there is overdue maintenance. These are the so-called exclusions. These exclusions can be found in the policy of virtually every insurer. In addition, there are other possible exclusions that differ from policy to policy. Among others, an exclusion for fire caused by riots, uprisings and nuclear explosions is very common.
Tips to prevent fire at home
Fire can be prevented by taking preventive measures. There are various things you can do to prevent a fire at home. These are mainly preventive measures that are fairly easy to take and a number of small changes in behaviour that improve fire safety. One example of this is cleaning the home in good time.
By following these tips, you can considerably reduce the chance of fire at home and so increase the safety of yourself and the people you live with. In addition, preventive measures can also help to reduce the costs of damage.
Make sure you do not place flammable materials near heat sources, such as candles and heaters.
Do not leave electrical appliances switched on unnecessarily and do not leave them unattended.
Regularly check the condition of electrical wiring and replace broken or worn wires immediately.
Make sure there is sufficient ventilation in the house and do not leave flammable items lying around.
Cleaning is important to prevent fire, because dust and clutter can be flammable. So keep your house clean and regularly clean behind and under appliances.
Install smoke detectors in the house and check regularly whether they still work. Make sure you always have a working fire extinguisher and a fire blanket in the house and that you know how to use them.
Do not leave candles or open fire unattended and keep them away from flammable materials.
Be careful when using appliances such as tumble dryers and washing machines, and do not leave them unattended.
Do not store flammable substances such as petrol and paint in the house, and always store them in a well-ventilated space outside the house.
Never leave the gas hob unattended and make sure there are no flammable items nearby.
Maintain the stove properly and have the chimney swept regularly. A blocked or poorly maintained chimney can be an important cause of house fires, because the flue gases are not discharged properly and build up in the chimney. This can lead to a fire that is difficult to extinguish and that spreads quickly through the house.
Frequently asked questions about liability for fire damage
Fire can cause a lot of damage to your home and belongings and can have a devastating impact on your life. If you ever have to deal with fire damage, it is important to know what is covered by your home contents or buildings insurance, how high the compensation is and which steps you need to take to get back on your feet as quickly as possible. In this FAQ about liability for fire damage we answer the most common questions on this subject.
What does home contents insurance cover in the event of fire damage to the home?
Home contents insurance covers the damage to the contents of the home. That is everything that is not permanently attached to the house. Examples are the sofa, the television, a carpet that is not glued down et cetera. A free-standing fridge, for example, falls under the home contents insurance, but a built-in fridge does not.
What does buildings insurance cover in the event of fire damage to the home?
Buildings insurance covers damage to the structure of the home. That is everything that is permanently attached to the home and that in principle is not taken along when moving house. Examples are the pipes, the roof, the kitchen, the bath et cetera. Laminate flooring fixed with nails or screws, for example, falls under the cover of the buildings insurance, but laminate that is not fixed does not.
How high is the compensation from the buildings insurer?
The buildings insurer covers all damage resulting from the fire, such as the damage from the fire and the extinguishing, up to a maximum of the rebuild value of the home. Depending on the policy, there are often a number of extra payments, for example for temporary replacement accommodation, for counter-assessments or for clean-up costs. Some buildings insurers pay such additional costs in full, but it is also possible that the insurer will only pay up to a certain maximum amount.
Does the insurer also pay if the home was rented out via Airbnb?
Renting out via Airbnb can be problematic. Many buildings insurance policies do not pay for damage when that damage did not arise in a private context. Renting out via Airbnb is often not regarded as purely private. Some insurers, such as Nationale-Nederlanden, do provide cover for short-term rentals, for example via Airbnb. Most Dutch insurers offer their website and policy documents in Dutch only.
What do I need to arrange after a fire?
The first step is to notify Stichting Salvage (the Salvage Foundation). Stichting Salvage is a foundation that helps consumers after a fire. Among other things, they arrange the initial support. The fire brigade will often already contact Stichting Salvage, but their first priority is usually extinguishing the fire. So ask the fire brigade commander yourself whether they have already alerted Salvage. The second step is to record all the damage. After the fire, it is important to record all the damage properly. Take photos of the damage and of the measures taken to prevent further damage. Photograph and register everything and keep receipts. The third step is to take the most important belongings with you. If there is no immediate danger, you are often allowed to enter the home briefly after a fire to collect the most important belongings. Do not only take money and valuables, but also passports, driving licences, bank cards, insurance documents, medical documents and the like. Think carefully about which belongings are definitely necessary.
The last step is to call in a counter-expert: buildings insurance usually includes a right to a counter-assessment (contra-expertise). Make use of this so that the damage is not simply assessed in the insurer's favour. With some insurers the cover for a counter-assessment is limited, so ask about the payments in advance.
Am I insured if I do not have smoke detector(s)?
By law, smoke detectors in the home are mandatory. If you do not have smoke detectors, however, this currently has no consequences for the home insurance yet. Insurers currently still provide cover for fire damage. This is the case with all major insurers. At the moment, insurers are mainly focusing on informing policyholders. In the case of fire damage without smoke detectors, compensation is still being paid out. In the future, however, it is possible that this will be handled more strictly.