You ask a sub to add your building company as an additional insured and receive a certificate with your name at the bottom. The holder field alone does not give you additional insured status. The policy must provide that status through its terms or an endorsement. ACORD important notice
Ask for the supporting language and have your licensed insurance adviser compare it with your agreement. That comparison does not settle whether a specific claim is covered.
State which protection your contract requires
Start with your contract’s insurance requirements and the work the sub will do. Give your adviser the legal name of your building company, the sub’s legal name, job location, proposed work, and expected dates. Ask what policy provisions must support the requirement.
Specify the requested status and policy when you contact the issuer. Your company can appear as certificate holder without gaining the policy rights you intended. North Carolina’s certificate law says a COI cannot confer additional rights beyond the referenced policy. G.S. 58-3-149(b)
State which protection you want reviewed and which work it concerns. If more than one project participant needs additional insured status, give your adviser each legal name. Do not assume one company name includes affiliates, owners, lenders, or everyone involved.
Know what each document does
The ACORD certificate summarizes listed policies and includes a certificate-holder field. Its notice says additional insured protection must come from policy provisions or an endorsement. Certificate fields and notice
Compare the certificate fields with the insurance-checking process before sending unresolved wording to your adviser.
Scroll to read all columns.
| Document or entry | What to use it for | What still needs review |
|---|---|---|
| Certificate holder entry | Identify the recipient of the insurance summary | Whether the policy grants that entity any rights |
| Additional insured indication | Identify a stated policy feature to investigate | Applicable provisions and conditions |
| Policy provisions | Read the protection provided by the actual policy | Whether it covers the company, work, dates, and agreement |
| Endorsement | Read a policy addition or change | Its scope, conditions, and connection to the issued policy |
| Written subcontract | Identify the parties’ requested insurance obligations | Whether the issued insurance satisfies them |
The NAIC endorsement guide explains that endorsements can add, remove, or change coverage. Compare the supplied endorsement with the original policy.
Use the table to organize your review. A contract requirement and a certificate statement are not themselves changes to the insurance policy. NC law prohibits certificates that purport to alter coverage or contain false or misleading policy information. Certificate restrictions
Request the provisions or endorsement from the issuer
Have the sub authorize the producer or insurer to send current documents and the policy wording you need reviewed. Include your correct legal name, the job reference, and the requirement your adviser wants reviewed.
The Texas Department of Insurance states that its certificate law does not prohibit agents or insurers from providing policy or endorsement copies. It also explains that a certificate can describe a blanket endorsement without automatically establishing a particular holder’s status. These are Texas-specific certificate rules, useful for understanding why the underlying wording matters. TDI questions 1 and 3
Ask for enough information to confirm that the wording belongs to the issued policy. A generic specimen shows what a form looks like. It does not tell you whether that form applies to the sub’s current policy. Have your adviser identify the evidence needed to resolve that question.
If the producer sends a different version after review, preserve both and label the current version. Do not edit the certificate or endorsement yourself.
New York’s certificate guidance also says certificates should evidence insurance without changing policy terms. That guidance concerns New York; use the rule that applies to your job.
Check which company and work the wording covers
Ask your adviser:
- Is our exact legal entity included under the supplied language?
- Does the wording apply to this subcontractor’s work for us?
- Does it require a written contract, and when must that contract exist?
- Does protection concern ongoing operations, completed operations, or both?
- Are location, project type, or operation restrictions relevant to our job?
- What other provisions affect the protection being requested?
The policy and endorsements determine the answers. A certificate cannot answer them by adding a broader description than the policy allows. NC certificate and policy distinction
Keep the response tied to the work reviewed. Do not use a review of one installation to assume coverage for unrelated work by the same sub.
Ask about timing and completed work
Give the adviser the expected work period and the follow-up responsibilities in your agreement. If your requirement includes completed work, ask the adviser to identify language supporting that requirement and any conditions about the coverage period.
Do not treat a certificate’s current effective and expiration dates as a complete answer about a later claim. The ACORD form lists policy periods while expressly making coverage subject to the policies’ terms and exclusions. Policy-period fields and notice
When a project moves or a policy renews, request another review of the applicable documents. Ask whether the relevant forms changed at renewal. Keep the earlier review so you can see what wording supported the original decision.
Check cancellation notice and waivers separately
Your agreement may also request notice of cancellation, a waiver of subrogation, or particular relationships among policies. Check each requirement separately. Avoid treating the words additional insured as shorthand for every contract condition.
The New York construction certificate addendum lists additional insured endorsements, primary and noncontributory coverage, and cancellation notice separately. Use it as a document example, not proof of the sub’s coverage.
The ACORD notice specifically says that a certificate statement does not substitute for required waiver-of-subrogation endorsements. The actual policy provisions still matter. ACORD important notice
In North Carolina, a holder’s right to cancellation or material-change notice depends on the statute’s conditions concerning policy or endorsement language. Additional insured wording should not be assumed to provide a notice right without that review. G.S. 58-3-149(e)
Ask your adviser which requirements are supported, which remain open, and which documents would resolve them. Ask an attorney to resolve discrepancies between the subcontract requirements and the insurance evidence.
Resolve missing wording before approving the start
If the certificate names your company but the producer has not supplied supporting language, mark the requirement pending. Tell the sub exactly what your adviser needs. Receiving the certificate and approving the start are separate decisions.
If the policy does not appear to meet the requested requirement, ask the producer what changes are possible and your adviser what those changes mean. Ask your attorney how the agreement should address a gap. Do not assume a broad sentence in the certificate fixes it.
For work already underway, give the advisers the actual timeline and current documents. Do not assume a new certificate covers earlier work. Coverage questions belong with the issuing insurer and the professionals reviewing the contract.
Keep a readable review record
Record the subcontracting entity, your entity, policy number, issuer contact, relevant form numbers or names, work period, review date, and unresolved conditions. Attach the language your adviser reviewed. Assign someone to each follow-up item.
Record the work reviewed, any conditions, and who will check the renewal. This suggested record does not guarantee that a future claim will be covered.
Use the subcontractor vetting workflow to assign the evidence check before the package is awarded.
Where Cercha fits
Cercha provides member profiles, credential badges, portfolios, and direct messaging to help you begin a trade-partner conversation. Use that contact to request insurance documents from the producer or insurer. A profile badge does not establish your company’s additional insured status.