Letting a contractor or vendor work on your property without the right insurance is one of the easiest ways to inherit a loss that was never yours. If a worker is hurt, if they damage the building or a neighbor's property, if their truck backs into something — the question of *whose insurance pays* gets answered by the paperwork you did (or didn't) collect before they started. Here's exactly what to require.
Why require insurance before work starts?
Because without it, their risk becomes your risk. An uninsured contractor's injured worker can sue you — and in many states you can be held responsible for their workers' comp (see should you let a contractor waive workers' comp). Damage they cause with no liability coverage can land on your policy. And at your own insurance audit, an uninsured subcontractor's cost can be added to your payroll and charged as premium. Requiring coverage up front is how you keep each party's risk where it belongs.
What insurance coverages should I require?
The core checklist for anyone working on your property:
- Commercial General Liability (GL) — covers third-party bodily injury and property damage they cause, including damage to your property. The foundation.
- Workers' Compensation — covers their workers' on-the-job injuries, so an injured worker doesn't come back to you. Require it even from solo operators (via a certificate or a valid state exemption).
- Commercial Auto — if they drive to the site, haul materials, or operate vehicles on your property.
- Umbrella / Excess Liability — adds limits over GL and auto for larger or higher-hazard jobs.
- Professional Liability (E&O) — for anyone providing design, engineering, or professional services, not just physical labor.
- Pollution / Environmental Liability — for trades with contamination exposure (abatement, fueling, pest control, environmental work).
- Builders Risk — on a construction project, confirm who carries it for the work in progress.
Not every job needs all of these — but GL, workers' comp, and (where relevant) auto are non-negotiable for almost any contractor on your premises.
What endorsements should I require?
Coverage alone isn't enough; you want *their* policy to actually protect *you*. That's three specific endorsements — the standard contractual risk-transfer package:
- Additional insured — adds you as an insured on their policy, so it defends and pays when you're pulled into a claim arising from their work. For construction, require both ongoing and completed-operations forms so you're covered during *and* after the job.
- Waiver of subrogation — stops their insurer from turning around and recovering from you after it pays a claim.
- Primary and non-contributory — makes their policy pay first, without forcing yours to contribute.
Each is a separate endorsement — one does not satisfy the others — and all three should be named in your contract and confirmed on the policy.
What limits should I require?
Scale the limits to the risk. A common baseline is $1 million per occurrence / $2 million aggregate on general liability, a $1 million combined single limit on auto, and an umbrella on top for bigger or higher-hazard work. Low-risk interior work can justify less; roofing, structural work, or anything around other people warrants more. The right number is the one that reflects what could actually go wrong on your property.
How do I verify the coverage is real?
This is where most owners get caught — a certificate is easy to produce and easy to misread:
1. Get a certificate of insurance before any work begins — showing each required coverage and limit. 2. Check the dates — the policy must be in force for the entire work period, not expiring mid-job. 3. Confirm the carrier is reputable and rated. 4. Request the actual endorsements for additional insured, waiver of subrogation, and primary and non-contributory — a certificate does not prove those are attached; only the endorsement does (see certificate of insurance vs. additional insured and how to get a certificate of insurance fast). 5. Keep it all on file for your own insurance audit. 6. Put the requirements in a written contract, not a handshake (see contractual liability).
What about a solo contractor or small vendor?
The same principles apply, scaled down — but don't skip workers' comp just because it's a one-person operation. A solo contractor should still show either a workers' comp certificate or a valid state exemption, because if they're hurt on your property with neither, you can still be the target. (A "ghost policy" shows coverage but doesn't cover the owner — see ghost policy workers' compensation.) For low-risk vendors, GL and auto may be enough; for anyone doing physical or hazardous work, require the full set.
This is routine for property managers, apartment owners, and HOAs — but it protects any business or owner letting others work on their premises.
Our approach
At Cory Washington & Co., we help property and business owners set clear, right-sized insurance requirements and build the habit of collecting and verifying proof *before* work starts — the coverages, the limits, and the additional insured, waiver of subrogation, and primary and non-contributory endorsements that make a contractor's policy actually protect you. We'll give you a requirements checklist, review the certificates and endorsements that come back, and make sure your own general liability and workers' comp are structured so someone else's gap doesn't become your claim.
Hiring contractors or vendors and not sure what to require? Request a quote or a policy review and we'll build the requirements with you.
Frequently Asked
What insurance should I require from a contractor before they work on my property?
At minimum: general liability (for injury or property damage they cause), workers' compensation (so an injured worker's claim doesn't land on you), and commercial auto if they drive or haul for the job. For larger or riskier work, add umbrella/excess, and professional liability or pollution coverage where the trade calls for it. Just as important as the coverages are three endorsements — additional insured, waiver of subrogation, and primary and non-contributory — and a certificate proving it all before work starts.
What liability limits should I require from a contractor?
It depends on the risk, but a common baseline is $1 million per occurrence / $2 million aggregate on general liability, with a higher combined limit (often $1 million) on auto, and an umbrella stacked on top for larger projects or higher-hazard work. The right number scales with the job: roof work, anything structural, or work around people warrants more than a low-risk interior task. Match the limits to what could actually go wrong.
How do I confirm a contractor's insurance is actually real and in force?
Get a certificate of insurance before any work begins, check that the policy dates cover the whole work period and the carrier is reputable, and — for additional insured, waiver of subrogation, and primary and non-contributory — request the actual endorsements, not just the certificate, because a certificate doesn't prove those are attached. Keep everything on file for your own insurance audit so an uninsured contractor's cost isn't added to your premium.
This article is general information for business owners, not insurance or legal advice, and does not bind or alter coverage. Policy terms, eligibility, and pricing vary by carrier and state — confirm specifics with our licensed team before making decisions.