A commercial insurance broker licensed in Arizona can do this for you, usually free. The broker compares the insurance section with your policies line by line, then adds the missing endorsements (changes to your policy), raises limits, or places an umbrella. Who this is for: Arizona contractors holding a new subcontract, owner contract, or public works contract.
The short version
- A broker licensed in Arizona can review your contract for free and tell you where your policies fall short.
- Your contractor license here needs only a bond and proof of workers comp. General liability comes from your contracts.
- Most contracts ask for the same three fixes: let your customer use your policy, stop your insurer chasing them, and pay first.
- Most rejected certificates fail on wording, not on limits. Check the wording first.
- Send the contract before you sign. Most fixes take one to three business days.
Who can actually do this work for me in Arizona?
| Who | What they can do | What they cannot do |
|---|---|---|
| Independent broker licensed here | Read the contract, compare it to your policies, add wording, raise limits, place an umbrella | Change the contract. Only your customer can. |
| Your current agent | Add wording and raise limits with your current insurer | Shop other insurers |
| The general contractor's insurance desk | Tell you why a certificate was rejected | Fix your policy. They only check it. |
The review is how a broker learns what to place, so it is usually free. Morrow marks up Arizona contracts in plain English at no charge.
What does Arizona require, and what does the contract add on top?
The legal list here is short. Your Registrar of Contractors license needs a surety bond sized by license type and yearly volume, from $1,000 for a small residential specialty contractor up to $100,000 for a large commercial general contractor (A.R.S. section 32-1152), plus proof of workers comp if you have employees. General liability is not a licensing requirement. Your contracts are what require it. See what an Arizona contractor license requires.
General contractors here read your workers comp certificate closely, and there is a reason. If a sub has no comp and the general contractor supervises the work, the general contractor's policy pays that sub's injured worker and gets billed premium for the sub's payroll at audit (A.R.S. section 23-902(B)). Collect certificates from your own subs first.
| Requirement | Who requires it here | Typical ask |
|---|---|---|
| Workers comp | State law (A.R.S. section 23-961), from your first employee | State benefits, plus employers liability, the part of workers comp that pays if an employee sues you, at three limits: commonly $100,000 each accident, $500,000 policy limit for disease, $100,000 each employee for disease. Bigger contracts ask $500,000 or $1,000,000 on all three. |
| General liability | Your contract, not the state | $1,000,000 for one incident, $2,000,000 for the year |
| Commercial auto | State minimum 25/50/15; contracts ask more | $1,000,000 combined single limit |
| Umbrella | Your contract | $1,000,000 to $5,000,000 on larger jobs |
What extra wording will an Arizona contract ask my broker to add?
Limits are the easy part. Wording is where certificates fail.
- Additional insured. Your customer can use your liability policy if they get sued over your work, usually including after the job is finished.
- Primary and noncontributory. Your policy pays first and your customer's does not chip in.
- Waiver of subrogation. Your insurer agrees not to chase your customer for money it paid, on general liability and separately on workers comp.
Blanket wording adds only the party you signed the contract with, for work in progress. It does not automatically add the owner, the lender, or the architect above your customer, and the broader forms that do reach them often drop coverage after the job ends. Ask for extra parties and completed operations by name. Names typed in the certificate's description box add nothing.
One local rule changes what a builder can ask for. On houses and condos, A.R.S. section 32-1159.01 stops an additional insured endorsement from paying the builder's own share of fault, so a residential contract demanding that is asking for something no policy here delivers. On private commercial work, A.R.S. section 32-1159 only voids clauses making you pay for the other side's sole fault.
What will the fixes cost me in Arizona?
| Fix | Illustrative cost | Time to get it |
|---|---|---|
| Additional insured, blanket wording for the party you contract with | Often no charge; otherwise about $50 to $300 per customer | 1 to 3 business days |
| Waiver on workers comp | Usually 2% to 5% of the premium for that job's payroll | 1 to 3 business days |
| $1,000,000 umbrella | Roughly $600 to $2,500 a year; roofing and work at height cost more | 1 day to 2 weeks |
Those are national illustrative ranges, not Arizona rates. Trade, payroll, claims and insurer move them.
Check the contract's insurer requirements before you buy. Most ask two things: an insurer rated A- VII or better, and, on public work, one admitted here. A specialty (surplus lines) insurer is not admitted, so it can pass the rating test and still be rejected on a public job. Specialty quotes here also add a 3% premium tax plus a 0.2% stamping fee. See what insurance a construction contract needs or who reviews an Arizona bid's insurance requirements for free.
What this looks like in real life
Illustrative example. It is typical of what we see and is not a promise of how any specific situation would be handled.
The setup: An electrical subcontractor in Mesa signs a $220,000 subcontract on a Chandler warehouse. The insurance pages ask for $1,000,000 for one incident and $2,000,000 for the year, a $2,000,000 umbrella, additional insured wording that continues after completion, primary wording, waivers, and $1,000,000 auto.
What went wrong: Her limits match, but the policy has no completed operations wording, her auto limit is $500,000, and she has no umbrella. The general contractor rejects her certificate three days before mobilization.
What it cost: Illustrative numbers: the completed operations change costs about $150, raising auto adds about $400 a year, and a $2,000,000 umbrella runs about $2,100. The crew waited six working days, about $7,800 in idle labor.
The fix: Send the insurance pages to a broker before you sign. Every fix was available in advance, and the review costs nothing.
Frequently asked questions
Q: Who can help me meet a construction contract's insurance requirements in Arizona?
An independent commercial insurance broker licensed in this state. The broker reads the insurance section, compares it with your policies, and adds the wording, limits, or umbrella you are missing. Most do it free.
Q: How fast can a broker turn this around?
Most reviews come back the same day or the next business day. The fixes take one to three business days, except an umbrella, which can take two weeks. Send the contract before you sign.
Q: Why does my general contractor care so much about my workers comp certificate?
Under A.R.S. section 23-902(B), a general contractor that supervises your work can be treated as your workers' employer for comp purposes if you have no policy. Their insurer would pay your injured worker and bill them for your payroll.
Q: The contract says my insurer must be admitted in Arizona. What does that mean?
The insurer has to be licensed by the state. Most standard insurers are; specialty (surplus lines) insurers are not. Public agencies usually require it alongside an A- VII rating.
Q: Can a broker change the contract's insurance requirements?
No. Only your customer can change the contract. A broker can explain why a requirement does not fit a small contractor, and customers do change them.
Q: Is a free contract review really free?
Yes. Reading the insurance section is how a broker learns what coverage to place, so most independent brokers do it at no charge with no purchase required. Ask up front so there is no confusion.
How Morrow helps
Morrow is a licensed independent commercial insurance brokerage that works with contractors and trades every day. Reading an Arizona contract's insurance section and matching it to your policies is the most common thing our Arizona contractor clients ask us to do.
- Free contract review. Send us the contract or bid documents and we mark up the insurance section in plain English, whether or not you buy anything from us.
- Free, instant certificates. Clients issue their own certificates of insurance online in about a minute, any hour, any day, at no charge.
- Markets you cannot reach online. One application, shopped across many insurance companies for general liability, workers comp, auto, umbrella, and pollution coverage.
One more thing. This article is general information and is not legal advice or a statement of coverage. Your contract and your policy wording control in every case. Requirements vary by customer, by state, and by insurance company, so have a licensed advisor review your own contract and your own policy before relying on any of it.
Last updated: Reviewed by the Morrow commercial lines team. Last updated September 2026.