All about the requirements of the Police Secure Housing label and insurers

The Police Secure Housing label (Politiekeurmerk Veilig Wonen) can earn you a discount from your insurer, but that discount has been on a downward trend for some time. More and more often, insurers no longer give a discount, or the label has even become a requirement. The latter is particularly the case for valuable home contents. Either way, good burglary protection is no unnecessary luxury. This page describes the situation in the Netherlands.

What is the Police Secure Housing label?

The Police Secure Housing label (PKVW) is an independent quality label indicating that a home meets certain security standards. The concept came over from England ("Secured by Design") and indicates that a home has no weak spots that make things easier for a burglar and that there are enough burglary-delaying measures in place. In other words, the Police Secure Housing label does not indicate that breaking in has become impossible, only that it is made sufficiently difficult for the burglar. This should be enough to keep opportunist burglars at a distance. When a home meets the requirements, it is awarded the label and a sticker is also put on the front and back door.

What are the requirements for the Police Secure Housing label?

To be able to obtain a PKVW certificate, the home must meet all kinds of requirements. These requirements largely relate to burglary prevention, but also to social safety. The requirements differ depending on, among other things, the type of building. Below, the requirements that apply are given for each type of building, including a short explanation.

Requirements for an existing owner-occupied home

Requirement W1: lighting and visibility of entrance doors

Doors to the home must be sufficiently lit so that they are visible from other homes or from the public road, and so that others can see who is standing at the door of the home. This requirement applies to both the front and the back door, as well as to (balcony) doors on the first and second floor that can be reached by climbing.

• Fitting a light fixture at front, side and back doors (not necessary if nearby public lighting already guarantees sufficient visibility)
• A light fixture at (balcony) doors on the first and second floor (not necessary if the route to the balcony door is already lit)
• For front doors set back by more than 40 centimetres, a light fixture must always be fitted and the light must shine directly on the door
• A centrally fitted light fixture may be sufficient if there are several doors in one facade, but it must then light all doors within a distance of 7.5 metres
• Solar-powered lamps with motion detection are permitted if they have a colour rendering of at least 70 Ra, a minimum burning time of 20 days at 15 activations per night and a light level of at least 2 lux (measured at floor level, 100 centimetres from the door and at a mounting height of 180 centimetres)
• The resident must be able to see from behind the front door who is standing at the front door. This can be achieved in many ways (for example a video doorbell, a door viewer, a door window, a door chain and so on)

Requirement W2: doors giving access to the homes must delay burglary for at least 3 minutes

• The facade element used must be burglar-resistant for at least 3 minutes (PKVW product list, PKVW Productenlijst), have been tested and approved by a recognised testing institute, or the door must be made immovable by screwing it into the frame
• A cylinder pull protection certified by SKG (a Dutch certification institute for building security products) must be fitted (at least 15 kN)
• Any glass present must be at least single float glass or wired glass
• Door panes smaller than 1.2 m² (PKVW Handleiding bestaande bouw 2020, the PKVW manual for existing buildings) where both clear opening dimensions are 15 cm or more must be fitted in accordance with the security guideline. Burglar-resistant film is not permitted, but fitting polycarbonate or burglar-resistant glazing is.
• Key safes must have at least an SKG 2* classification, and a key-operated key safe must have a half cylinder with an SKG 3* classification
• All accessible doors with a lock that has a half cylinder on the inside must be fitted with certified blind fittings with at least an SKG 2* classification

Requirement W3: accessible windows and ventilation openings must delay burglary for at least 3 minutes

• This only concerns windows or ventilation openings where all clear opening dimensions are at least 15 centimetres
• The facade element used must be burglar-resistant for at least 3 minutes (PKVW product list), have been tested and approved by a recognised testing institute, or the window must be made immovable by screwing it into the frame. It is also sufficient to replace the window with a fixed panel infill, with or without a ventilation grille
• For movable and fixed windows with a glass surface smaller than 1.2 m², the glass must be fitted in accordance with the security guideline
• The glass must be at least single float glass or wired glass

Requirement W4: basement windows, hatches, skylight domes and roof windows must be burglar-resistant for at least 3 minutes

• This only concerns skylight domes, roof windows or basement windows where all clear opening dimensions are at least 15 centimetres
• Basement windows or hatches that are below ground level and are accessible must meet requirement W3. Lockable grilles may be sufficient, but this must then be submitted for assessment to the CCM (Commissie voor Compenserende Maatregelen, the committee for compensating measures)
• Roof windows must meet requirement W3
• Skylight domes must be approved by a recognised testing institute (resistance class 2), have obtained a declaration of conformity of at least 3 minutes of burglar resistance, or be fitted with approved burglar-resistant products from the PKVW product list

Requirement W5: presence of smoke detectors

• At least one working smoke detector must be fitted on each floor level, except in spaces where the walkable floor area is less than 8 m² and the height is lower than 190 centimetres (for example crawl-space attics)
• If an attic floor does not meet the above exception, a smoke detector must be fitted
• Smoke detectors that are already fitted and working properly do not need to be replaced, but new smoke detectors must at least have a CE mark (standard EN 14604)

Requirement W6: advice and information

It is important that residents receive sufficient advice and information about escape routes, key management, security provisions and so on. Such information can be provided in writing or through personal contact. PKVW companies will usually schedule a personal introductory meeting and give verbal advice, followed by written advice in which everything is set out once again.

Requirements for an existing residential complex

Requirement C1: accessibility and lighting at the entrance to the residential building

The residential building must not be freely accessible and an access control system must be installed. This must also enable residents to recognise each other and visitors.

• Closing off fire escapes, galleries and emergency stairwells with a gate that prevents operation from the outside
• The main entrance must have a door that meets requirement C2 (see below). In addition, there must be a doorbell panel, as well as an intercom and the option to unlock the outer door from upstairs
• The main entrance must have sufficient lighting inside
• At least one light fixture with a dusk switch must be fitted on the outside of the entrance door (colour rendering of at least 60 Ra)

Requirement C2: accessibility and lighting at communal areas

These requirements apply to all doors that give access to various communal areas, such as inner gardens, storage rooms, fire escapes, car parks and so on. The following requirements must be met here:

• The doors must be self-closing
• Measures must prevent the door latch from being slipped open (flipperen)
• Doors on escape routes may only be openable from the inside and may not have a movable door handle on the outside
• Clear glass must be fitted in or directly next to the door (for example polished wired glass)
• At entrance doors and emergency exit doors that open onto public ground, a light fixture must be fitted (except where public lighting is sufficient)
• Bright, even and non-dazzling lighting must be fitted over the entire area of the communal space
• Outside galleries and the corresponding home entrances must be evenly and well lit
• Switching off or dimming the light in a storage complex or bicycle shed is permitted, but the light must stay on for at least 10 minutes when someone enters the space. Dimming is also preferred over switching off

Requirement C3: requirements for a communal storage complex

• With a maximum of 50 individual storage units, the entrance door must meet requirement C2, otherwise requirement C4 applies
• Every individual storage unit door must be burglar-resistant for at least 3 minutes
• Every individual storage unit window must be burglar-resistant (see requirement C8)
• The complex must be easy to overlook by fitting transparent glass next to or in the entrance doors. There must be no recesses or dark corners. If necessary, tamper-proof mirrors must be fitted to remove blind spots
• Note: lighting requirements at entrance doors from the outside facade continue to apply in full

Requirement C4: requirements for the communal bicycle shed

• The bicycle shed must be burglar-resistant for at least 3 minutes. For this, the entrance door must be a self-closing escape door and be fitted with a lock with a deadbolt ejector (nachtschootuitwerper)
• Glass near the door or in the door must be burglar-resistant
• Doors that open outwards must have SKG 2* hinges
• Fencing must be shielded against operation from the outside
• Lighting must meet requirement C2
• Windows must meet requirement C8
• There must be at least 1 parking space per home with a single-person household. For other homes, a minimum of 1.5 per home applies

Requirement C5: requirements for back paths

Back paths must be well lit and easy to overlook. These requirements also apply to connecting paths.

• There must be sufficient lighting with a colour rendering of at least 60 Ra, but public lighting may be sufficient
• The lighting must be switched on by means of a dusk switch
• Overhanging greenery, structures and/or obstacles must be removed to guarantee a clear view

• Entrance doors must always remain lit over a length of at least 7.5 metres beyond the entrance doors
• A maximum of 35 individual storage units may open onto the car park
  Clear transparent (polished wired) glass in all doors of accessible spaces
• Entrance doors to the residential complex must meet requirement C2

Requirement C7: requirements for the lighting of publicly accessible car parks

• There must be a view of the publicly accessible car park from at least two homes, and a maximum of 20% may fall outside the field of view of the homes
• Objects and planting must not block the view of parked vehicles
• There must be sufficient lighting (average horizontal illuminance of at least 2 lux (Egem) / 0.4 lux (Emin), with a uniformity of at least 0.2 Uh and a colour rendering of at least 60 Ra

With a combination of covered and open-air parking, additional requirements apply:

• There must be no blind spots at the covered parking spaces
• If the car park has a maximum of 25 covered parking spaces, the average horizontal illuminance must be at least 20 lux (Em) with a colour rendering of at least 60 Ra and a uniformity of at least 0.3 Uh
• If the car park has more than 25 covered parking spaces, the horizontal illuminance must be at least 40 lux (Em) with a colour rendering of at least 60 Ra and a uniformity of at least 0.3 Uh

Requirement C8: requirements regarding the accessibility of storage units, garages or sheds

• No glass may be fitted in doors of individual storage units
• Glazing of windows with a glass surface smaller than 1.2 m², where all clear opening dimensions are at least 15 cm, must meet the requirements of the security guideline
• Certified products must be used on doors, windows or ventilation openings, they must be approved according to resistance class 2, or they must have obtained a declaration of conformity
• The requirements for windows and ventilation openings are also met if the window is made immovable by screwing it into the frame, by reducing one of the clear opening dimensions to less than 15 cm, or by replacing the window with fixed glass or a fixed panel infill
• The maximum free space under a storage unit door may not be more than 5 cm

Requirement C9: requirements regarding the lighting of storage units, garages and sheds

Sufficient lighting must be fitted on the outside to deter burglars. These requirements apply to garages, sheds and storage units that do not give access to homes.

• A light fixture must be mounted at every entrance door, or there must be sufficient public lighting or back path lighting
• Under certain conditions, the use of a solar-powered lamp with motion detection is permitted (see the requirements also given under W1)

Stricter requirements for new-build projects

The requirements above only apply when existing homes are adapted. For new-build homes, it is easier to take even better measures right away. Developers can therefore include the PKVW requirements in the building plans at an early stage. Here the building requirements are not only more extensive, but also more complex. It is important to discuss this carefully with the developer in advance. Contractors can bring in a PKVW building plan adviser for this.

The conditions can change constantly and it is an impossible task to keep track of everything all the time. Always ask the insurer about the latest situation.