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What to Put in the Insurance Section of a Subcontract Agreement

By SubCover HQ · Updated Nov 2, 2026 · 2 min read

A certificate of insurance shows that a policy exists. It doesn't create any obligation. The insurance section of your subcontract (often an exhibit) is what says what the sub must carry, who must be protected, and what happens if they don't. Many endorsements, such as blanket additional insured and waiver of subrogation, only apply when there's a written contract requiring them. So a weak or missing insurance clause can quietly undercut every certificate in your file.

The topics an insurance section usually covers

1. Required coverages and minimum limits for general liability, commercial auto, workers' comp and employers' liability, and umbrella or excess. Many contracts tier these by trade risk.
2. Additional insured status for you, the owner, and anyone else you must protect, for both ongoing and completed operations, with the form or "equivalent" language your attorney prefers.
3. Primary and noncontributory wording, so the sub's policy responds before yours.
4. Waiver of subrogation on the policies you require.
5. How long coverage must last, including completed operations coverage for a period after the job ends.
6. Evidence of coverage: a certificate from the agent before work starts, copies of endorsements on request, and renewal certificates before each policy expires.
7. Notice if coverage is cancelled, reduced, or not renewed.
8. Insurer quality, often a minimum A.M. Best rating.
9. Lower-tier subs: flow-down of the same requirements. See sub-subcontractor COIs.
10. Consequences of non-compliance, such as no site access, withheld payment, or your right to buy coverage and back-charge.

Connect the clause to your COI review

Whatever the contract requires is your checklist when a certificate comes in. If the contract requires $2,000,000 general aggregate per project and additional insured for completed operations, every certificate should be checked for exactly that. If your requirements live in someone's head instead of the contract, your review can't be consistent.

Common mistakes

• Using one old template for every sub, regardless of trade or project.
• Requiring endorsements the contract never actually mentions, or the reverse.
• Forgetting to name the property owner or lender that your own contract requires you to protect.
• No requirement to send renewal certificates, so coverage lapses unnoticed.
• Letting work start before the certificate arrives "just this once."

Get started

Use our free insurance requirements generator to draft a list of coverages and limits by trade, then have your attorney and insurance professional turn it into contract language. Once it's set, SubCover HQ checks every certificate against those exact requirements and chases what's missing, for $99/month.

Frequently asked questions

Does a certificate of insurance create coverage?

No. A certificate is informational. The policy and its endorsements provide coverage, and many endorsements only apply when a written contract requires them.

Should insurance requirements be the same for every sub?

Many contractors tier requirements by trade risk, with higher limits for roofers or excavators than for painters or cleaners.

Who should write the insurance clause?

Your attorney, with input from your insurance professional, so the contract matches what your own policy and owner contracts require.

This guide is general information, not insurance or legal advice. Have an attorney draft or review your contract language.