The purpose of this document is to provide additional guidance for rating tasks for the Netherlands for both Maps Search and Maps Autocomplete Evaluation. These guidelines should be used as a supplement to the Global Guidelines.
The main rating challenges in the Netherlands are:
When judging distance, keep in mind that the Netherlands is a very small country, and users are less likely to travel long distances than you might expect in much larger countries. This is particularly true in very dense metropolitan areas. In more rural areas, longer distances may be appropriate, depending on the distribution and availability of possible results.
A business name is badly formatted when components are presented in the wrong order or abbreviated. This should be rated Partially Correct.
Result | Official Name | Rating and Explanation | |
Valk Hotel Breukelen van der Stationsweg 91 3621 LK Breukelen | Van der Valk Hotel Breukelen Stationsweg 91 3621 LK Breukelen | Name Accuracy | Partially Correct |
In this example the surname prefixes ‘van der’ are added at the end of the name instead of before. | |||
Tandartsenpraktijk Waars J G Van Bossestraat 41 1051 JT Amsterdam | Tandartsenpraktijk J G Waars Van Bossestraat 41 1051 JT Amsterdam | Name Accuracy | Partially Correct |
In this example the initials ‘J G’ are added after the name instead of before. | |||
v.d. Valk Hotel Breukelen Stationsweg 91 3621 LK Breukelen | Van der Valk Hotel Breukelen Stationsweg 91 3621 LK Breukelen | Name Accuracy | Partially Correct |
While it’s very common to shorten names that include ‘van de’, ‘van der’, ‘van den’ etc. the result name should always match the official business name. | |||
Addendum’s as B.V. or V.O.F. refer to the corporate structure and should not be used. These names should be rated Partially Correct, as long as the business or POI can still be recognized.
4.2 Required address components
The table below shows the required address components for different result types for both Search and Autocomplete.
* The postal code is often not displayed in Autocomplete. Both results with and without are rated correct as long as the postal code is not wrong. Also see the section on Postal Code Formats further down in this document.
** The country is often a “nice to have” piece of information even for address type results, but should be included when the result is located in another country. If missing in that case, rate Incorrect and select the Country checkbox.
4.3 Examples of expected address components
Result Type | Search | Autocomplete |
Business / POI | Van Gogh Museum Museumplein 6 1071 DJ Amsterdam Nederland | Van Gogh Museum Museumplein 6 Amsterdam, Nederland |
Full Address | Museumplein 6 Museumplein 6 1071 DJ Amsterdam Nederland | Museumplein 6 Amsterdam, Nederland |
Street | Museumplein Museumplein 1071 DJ Amsterdam Nederland | Museumplein Amsterdam, Nederland |
Postal Code | 1071 DJ 1071 DJ Amsterdam Nederland | 1071 DJ Amsterdam, Nederland |
Sub-Locality (neigbhorhood/ borough) | Museumkwartier Museumkwartier Amsterdam Nederland | Museumkwartier Amsterdam, Nederland |
Locality | Amsterdam Amsterdam Nederland | Amsterdam, Nederland |
Province | Noord-Holland Noord-Holland Nederland | Noord Holland Nederland |
Country | Nederland Nederland | Nederland |
Street numbers can have extensions. For example, when more buildings are constructed than numbers were originally allotted, discontinuity of numbering is avoided by giving multiple adjacent buildings the same number, with a letter suffix starting at “A”.
In Amsterdam, street level apartments sometimes have the extension ‘hs’ or ‘H’. Apartments on the first and second floor get the extension ‘een-hoog’, ‘twee-hoog’, etc. In Utrecht, the first and second floor get the extension ‘bis’ and ‘bis A’. Other cities use the extension ‘zwart (or ZW)’ en ‘rood (or RD)’ for lower level and upper level apartments.
A street number with an extension is a separate address that can be verified with the postal service. When this is wrong it should be rated as Incorrect – Street Number. If the extension is missing and the address doesn’t exist without it, the correct rating is Incorrect – Address does not exist.
The use of unit numbers is very rare. When a street number with an additional letter or number can’t be verified with the postal service, this could be a unit number. Often, it’s located in office buildings or another commercial space. In these cases, mistakes should be rated as Incorrect – Unit/Apt.
Result | Official Address | Rating and Explanation |
Van Bossestraat 41 | Van Bossestraat 41 H | Address Accuracy Correct |
Van Bossestraat 41 1051 JT Amsterdam | 1051 JT Amsterdam | In this example, the query is for a an apartment in Amsterdam. While the official street number is 41H it’s very common to exclude the extension for apartments at street level. | |
Van Bossestraat 41 Van Bossestraat 41 1051 JT Amsterdam | Van Bossestraat 41-2 1051 JT Amsterdam | Address Accuracy | Incorrect – Street Number |
In this example, the query is for a an apartment on the second floor. This is not an optional unit number. | |||
Overtoom 363 Overtoom 363 1054 NJ Amsterdam | Overtoom 363A 1054 NJ Amsterdam | Address Accuracy | Incorrect – Address does not exist |
In this example, the query is for a specific address “Overtoom 363”. The result is the exact same address. Research with the postal service shows that only 363A and 363B are valid address and that number 363 doesn’t exist. | |||
Nieuwe DAG Zekerheid Daalwijkdreef 47 1103 AD Amsterdam | Daalwijkdreef 47 #210-211 1103 AD Amsterdam | Address Accuracy | Incorrect – Unit/Apt |
This address is associated with a business located in a shared office space at Daalwijkdreef 47. | |||
As postal codes are associated with street segments, not entire streets, most streets have multiple valid postal codes. The postal code is optional for street type results, but should be a correct postal code when present.
Result Official Address Rating and Explanation
Nieuwezijds Voorburgwal Nieuwezijds Voorburgwal Amsterdam | Nieuwezijds Voorburgwal Amsterdam | Address Accuracy | Correct |
Postal codes are optional for street type results. | |||
Ceintuurbaan Ceintuurbaan 1072 GF Amsterdam | Ceintuurbaan Amsterdam | Address Accuracy | Incorrect – Postal Code |
The postal code is not required, but should be correct when it’s included in the address details. There are multiple postal codes assocated with Ceintuurbaan. 1072 GF however, is not one of them and therefore considered Incorrect. | |||
Versterkerstraat Versterkerstraat 1322 Almere | Versterkerstraat 1322 AP Almere | Address Accuracy | Incorrect – Postal Code |
There are multiple postal codes associated with Versterkerstraat. And while optional, any of them can be included in the address details. A partial postal code, without the letters, should be considered incorrect. | |||
Deken van den Ackerhof Deken van den Ackerhof 5431 DP Cuijk | Deken van den Ackerhof 5431 DP Cuijk .va \n | Address Accuracy | Correct |
While the postal code is optional, it’s correct if it’s included, as long as it’s a valid postal code. | |||
For a business or full address, the full 6-character postal code is expected. | |||
Many localities are part of a larger municipality and most municipialities consist of a few smaller localities. Results should always include the smallest locality, not the larger municipiality.
Result | Official Address | Rating and Explanation |
Royal Schiphol Group Evert van de Beekstraat 202 1118 CP Haarlemmermeer | Evert van de Beekstraat 202 1118 CP Schiphol | Address Accuracy | Incorrect – Locality |
Schiphol is the correct locality in the larger municipality Haarlemmermeer. |
Sometimes results include a borough instead of the locality (Amsterdam Zuidoost being the most common example). Even though it’s the correct borough, it’s not in the official address format and should be rated as Incorrect – Locality.
Result | Official Address | Rating and Explanation |
Karspeldreef 14 Karspeldreef 14 1101 CK Amsterdam- Zuidoost | Karspeldreef 14 1101 CK Amsterdam | Address Accuracy | Incorrect – Locality |
Amsterdam-Zuidoost is not a correct locality as it is a borough of Amsterdam. |