Senior research fellow, Institute of Construction Law of the Netherlands embruggeman@ibr.nl

Construction safety and safety on and around construction sites have been an issue of concern in the Netherlands for more than a decade now. In this article the author discusses the recent accidents (Section 1) and the causes of those problems, as established by the independent Dutch Safety Board, and the recommendations made by this Board (Section 2). Finally, the recent measures undertaken by the government and stakeholders are discussed (Section 3) as well as a pending new law on quality assurance, the Quality Assurance Act in Construction (Wet Kwaliteitsborging voor het Bouwen) (Section 4).

In the last decade, The Netherlands has faced a number of accidents concerning both the construction safety of buildings as well as safety on and around construction sites. The Dutch have experienced not only collapsing balconies (Maastricht and Leeuwarden), but also stairs (Utrecht), rooftops (due to excessive snow fall), part of a football stadium (under construction) in Enschede, a supermarket exterior wall (Drachten), a parking lot (in Eindhoven) which was still under construction, and the recent collapse of another parking lot, already in use, in Wormerveer.1 The actual collapse of buildings was not the only source of concern, as there were also numerous threats regarding construction safety, e.g. the recent evacuation of dozens of existing buildings because of suspected