Over €225,000 in damages paid to victims of fatbike accidents in two years
Over the past two years, the Motor Vehicle Guarantee Fund paid out over €225,000 in compensation to victims of fatbike accidents, EenVandaag reported based on figures from the fund. This only concerns fatbikes that have been souped up. Unmodified fatbikes are considered bicycles and fall under liability insurance.
In total, the Motor Vehicle Guarantee fund received about 20 claims in 2024 and 2025 regarding fatbikes. Amounts ranged from €900 up to as much as €121,000.
The Motor Vehicle Guarantee Fund is there for people who suffered damage caused by a motor vehicle, but cannot turn to an insurer for compensation, for example, because the driver fled or the vehicle is uninsured. The Guarantee Fund advances the amount and recovers the costs from the liable driver, or their parents if they are minors.
A modified fatbike cannot be insured, Rembrandt Groenewegen of legal assistance firm DAS Rechtsbijstand told EenVandaag. “That means that the driver, or, depending on age, the parents, must pay for the damage themselves.”
According to Sanne Haanen of TeamAlert, an organization that works for safer roads for young people, most fatbike riders don’t know that their insurance won’t cover a modified fatbike. Only about a quarter of young people know this, she told EenVandaag. “A quarter is actually quite low, considering how many young people own a fatbike.”
And modifying a fatbike to make it go faster is very simple. There are instructional videos online, Haanen said. “With a few button presses, you hit 50 kilometers per hour in no time.”
Last month, the national government launched a campaign to encourage parents to talk to their children about their fatbikes, and to inform parents on how to check if the bike has been modified. The government is also working on stricter measures against vehicles, including mandatory helmets and an age limit.
