Complaints survey
Insurance providers active in the Netherlands are legally required to submit an annual report to the Dutch Authority on Financial Markets (AFM) detailing all complaints received; closed as well as pending. This report must follow a specific format. Below, you will find everything you need to know about the complaints survey and how to comply with this request.
Who is subject to the mandatory complaints survey?
The obligation to complete and submit the complaints survey applies to all insurance providers under Dutch supervision. According to law, these parties are required to keep a complaints administration. The AFM deems it important to ensure a comprehensive understanding of all parties operating in the Netherlands. For this reason, we request information on complaints directed against providers operating in the Netherlands.
Preparing for the complaints survey
You can prepare for the complaints survey by reading the KUV 1 Complaints survey specification (pdf, 527 kB), KUV 3 Definitions and range of values (xls, 28 kB) and the KUV 2 Frequently asked questions (pdf, 802 kB). For each complaint, you have to report a number of characteristics. You can do so by filling in KUV 4 Excel Data entry form (xls, 884 kB). You may also choose to compile the reporting yourself and validate it by means of the technical instructions
Filling in or compiling the reporting
Depending on the number of complaints received, you can choose to either manually enter all requested complaints in the KUV 4 Excel Data entry form (xls, 884 kB) or compile and validate the report following the provided instructions. To do this, it is important that you make use of the KUV 1 Complaints survey specification (pdf, 580 kB).
To compile and validate the reporting from your in-house complaints administration, you can use the KUV 3 Definitions and range of values (xls, 28 kB), the XML schema included in KUV 5 Taxonomy (xsd) and KUV 6 Range of values reference files. Validating your report in advance helps you to check whether the reporting meets the technical requirements and specified range of values.
Planning your complaints survey
At the beginning of 2025, all insurance providers will receive the annual request for information regarding their complaints, asking them to upload their report. The report must be submitted within five weeks through the AFM Portal. If the company has not received any complaints, this must also be registered in the reporting environment of the AFM Portal. Please note: Insurance providers with multiple provider licenses must report separately for each license.
Submitting the reporting via the AFM Portal
Reporting can only be done via the AFM Portal. To do this you will need an account. If needed, The AFM Portal’s login page has a manual explaining the registration procedure for the AFM Portal and how to authorize staff to submit a reporting.
Complaints administration
Insurers in Europe are required to ensure the proper handling of complaints they receive from clients. This also means that you need to keep a complaints administration. Given that complaints serve as a key indicator of the quality and diligence of your service provision, the AFM is interested in the complaints you receive from Dutch clients.
This is why the AFM has set up an annual complaints survey for insurers. It is set up in a way that contributes substantively to our objectives. The survey annually provides the AFM with a market-wide understanding of trends and developments in relation to complaints that insurers receive from Dutch clients.
In accordance with the guidelines of the European insurance supervisory authority EIOPA, we are required to ensure that insurance providers supply us with information on all complaints received as well as complaint handling.