Car insurance in the Netherlands (2026 guide for expats)

In the Netherlands, car insurance is mandatory for every registered vehicle — at a minimum you need third-party liability cover (WA-verzekering), and driving without it leads to fines and penalties. If you have just arrived or bought a car here, this guide explains the three levels of cover, what they cost in 2026, and how to keep your premium down. Once you know your options, HuisAssist can help you find a suitable provider.

Types of car insurance in the Netherlands

There are three cover levels, from a legal minimum up to near-total protection. The right choice mostly depends on the value of your car.

Third-party liability (WA-verzekering)

WA is the mandatory minimum. It only covers damage you cause to other people — their property and any personal injury. It does not cover any damage to your own car. This makes it the usual choice for older or lower-value cars where the repair cost is not worth insuring.

Limited comprehensive (beperkt casco / WA+)

Limited comprehensive (often sold as "WA+") includes everything in WA, plus a defined set of damage to your own car: theft, fire, storm and hail, broken glass, and collisions with animals. It is a popular middle option for cars that are a few years old.

Fully comprehensive (allrisk / WA volledig casco)

Allrisk is the most extensive cover available. On top of limited comprehensive, it also pays for damage to your own car caused by a collision or your own mistake — even when the accident is your fault. It is usually the sensible choice for new or high-value cars.

What a car insurance costs in 2026

Premiums vary widely because they depend on a lot of factors:

• The level of cover (WA, WA+ or allrisk)
• Your age and driving experience
• The make, model and value of your car
• Where you live (your postcode)
• Your claim-free history

As a rough guide for 2026, WA tends to start around €40–€60 per month, while fully comprehensive (allrisk) commonly runs €85–€145 per month, depending heavily on your profile and car. Younger drivers and city postcodes push prices up; many no-claim years pull them down sharply.

The no-claim discount (schadevrije jaren)

The Netherlands rewards claim-free driving heavily through a bonus-malus ladder. Every year you drive without making a claim, you move up a step and earn a bigger discount on the base premium.

• Each insurer asks how many claim-free years (schadevrije jaren) you have built up
• The maximum discount is large — up to around 75–80% off the base premium at the top of the ladder, though it takes many claim-free years to get there
• Your claim-free years are registered centrally (Roy-data) and are transferable: when you switch insurer you take them with you
• If you previously drove abroad, ask your former insurer for a statement so you can prove your record here

Bringing your no-claim years from abroad

This is the single biggest lever on your premium as a newcomer, and the one most people get wrong by simply not asking. Dutch insurers register claim-free years centrally in Roy-data, but a foreign record is not in that system — so unless you produce proof, you start at zero and pay a beginner's premium for years.

What to do, in order:

1. Ask your previous insurer for a written statement before you cancel, or as soon as you can after. It has to state the number of consecutive claim-free years and the period the policy ran. A screenshot of your account is not enough; insurers want a signed or officially issued document.
2. Get it in English, German or Dutch if you can. Some insurers accept other languages, several will ask for a translation, and that costs time you would rather not spend.
3. Ask before you buy, not after. Insurers differ in what they accept: some recognise EU records in full, some cap what they will credit, and some only recognise years from a policy that ended within the last year or two. It is a legitimate question to put to two or three insurers before choosing one.
4. Do not overstate it. Claim-free years are checked. An inflated number found later can cost you the discount retroactively, and in serious cases the policy.

What car insurance does not cover

The three cover levels differ in what they pay for, but some exclusions apply at every level: damage while driving under the influence, driving without a valid licence, deliberate damage, damage during racing or track use, and normal wear and tear.

Two more worth knowing about. Allrisk cover usually stops being offered once a car passes a certain age — often somewhere between eight and fifteen years — so a policy you take out now may be downgraded at renewal. And a claim on your own damage costs you claim-free years, which is why a small dent is often cheaper to repair yourself than to claim: losing several years of no-claim discount can cost more over the following years than the repair.

Where to arrange car insurance

Sorting out the rest of your move? Our overview of insurance in the Netherlands shows what else you are expected to have, and we have separate guides to health insurance, home insurance and legal insurance.