Use a broker who lets you issue your own certificates online, instead of emailing a request and waiting. A certificate of insurance is a one page summary of your policies, limits, and dates, and a builder's payment system checks yours every month. Morrow clients log in and send one in about a minute, any hour, any day, at no charge. Changes to the policy itself still go through your broker. Who this is for: carpentry and millwork contractors who need proof of insurance to get on site or get paid.
The short version
- A carpentry certificate usually shows general liability, workers comp, commercial auto, and an umbrella.
- General contractors ask most, followed by builders, homeowners, and cabinet dealers.
- Morrow clients make their own certificates online in about a minute, day or night, at no charge.
- An expired certificate can freeze a progress payment even when your coverage never lapsed.
What does a carpentry certificate have to show?
Four policies cover most requests. Millwork shops add a fifth, because the product is worth a lot before it is on a wall.
| Policy | What it covers | Limit customers usually ask for |
|---|---|---|
| General liability | Damage to the building, a window opening that leaks, and workmanship claims found later | $1,000,000 for one incident and $2,000,000 for the year |
| Workers comp | Saw and nail gun injuries, falls, and lifting injuries | Whatever your state requires, plus three limits for employee suits, commonly $100,000 each accident, $500,000 for disease in a policy year, and $100,000 for disease per employee. Contracts often ask for all three at $500,000 or $1,000,000 |
| Commercial auto | Trucks and trailers hauling material | $1,000,000 for each accident |
| Umbrella | A second layer above your liability and auto limits | $1,000,000 on houses, $2,000,000 to $5,000,000 on commercial work |
| Material waiting to be installed | Cabinets, doors, and millwork stacked on site before install | The value of the load, often $50,000 to $250,000 |
That last one has a name your broker will use: an installation floater. One state note: in North Dakota, Ohio, Washington, and Wyoming, workers comp comes from the state fund, and fund policies pay nothing when an employee sues, so ask for stop gap cover to fill the hole.
Who asks a carpenter for a certificate?
- General contractors, on almost every commercial job.
- Home builders, before your first trim package.
- Homeowners, on remodels, often before a deposit.
- Property managers, on tenant fit outs and repairs.
- Cabinet and millwork dealers, who hire you to install.
Why do carpentry contracts care about what happens after the job?
Because bad carpentry rarely announces itself on the last day. A leaking window opening or a stair that pulls loose turns up months or years later, and the claim goes to the builder, who then looks at your policy. That is why the wording that keeps your customer protected after you finish is the item builders check first, and plenty of carpentry policies do not carry it until someone asks.
What extra wording do carpentry contracts ask for?
| What the contract asks for | What it means | How it gets there |
|---|---|---|
| Additional insured | Your customer can use your liability policy if they are sued because of your work | Blanket wording (CG 20 33) adds the customer you signed the contract with, for work in progress, when the contract required it in writing before the loss. It does not reach the owner, the lender, or the architect above your customer. A broader blanket form (CG 20 38) can reach them, but it leaves out coverage after the job is finished |
| Coverage after the job ends | It keeps going after the work is done, when workmanship claims arrive | A scheduled change (CG 20 37). Carriers make blanket versions by typing that wording into its schedule, or on their own form |
| Your policy pays first | Your policy pays first and your customer's does not chip in | Its own added line (CG 20 01), not a line inside the form above |
| No claim against your customer | Your insurer agrees not to go after your customer for its money back | One change on liability (CG 24 04) and another on workers comp (WC 00 03 13) |
Typing extra names into the description box adds nobody to your policy. The change goes on the policy first.
How do I issue one myself in about a minute?
- Log in from the shop.
- Pick the policies the contract asks for.
- Type the customer's legal name exactly as the contract spells it.
- Add the job address.
- Email it, or upload it to the portal yourself.
No charge, and no wait for Monday. See getting a certificate instantly and why renewal certificates matter mid job.
What still has to go through my broker?
- Naming a customer your policy does not already pick up.
- Raising a limit or adding an umbrella.
- Adding a waiver on workers comp, which some states handle their own way.
- Covering a big millwork package sitting on site.
You get a reply usually within the hour on business days. Insurers almost never backdate. A change added today does nothing for something that already went wrong, and a customer saying you can start does not create coverage for the gap.
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: A finish carpentry company in New York is three months into a $310,000 restaurant fit out. Its policies renew on the first, and the general contractor's system flags every vendor whose certificate has run out.
What went wrong: The renewal certificate did not get uploaded on time. The system blocked the monthly payment application, and accounting will not pay a vendor its file says is uninsured.
What it cost: A $38,000 progress payment sat for three weeks. The owner covered two crews from a credit line, about $700 in interest and fees, plus a week of phone calls.
The fix: Nothing lapsed except the paperwork. A carpenter who issues his own can post the new certificate the morning the policy renews.
Frequently asked questions
Q: How can I get a free, instant certificate of insurance for my carpentry business?
Use a broker whose clients issue their own. Morrow clients log in, pick the customer, and send one in about a minute, at no charge, at any hour.
Q: My policy just renewed. Do I need to send a new certificate?
Yes, to everyone holding one for a live job. Most contractor payment systems check the dates automatically, and an old date can hold up your money even though your coverage never stopped.
Q: Why do builders ask for protection that lasts after I finish?
Because carpentry claims show up later, when a window leaks or a floor moves. It is a separate change to your policy, so ask your broker to confirm it is on there before you promise it.
Q: Are my cabinets covered while they sit on the job site?
Not by your liability policy. Material waiting to be installed needs its own cover, and larger jobs sometimes want that shown on the certificate too.
Q: Does a certificate of insurance cost money?
It should not. Brokers issue them at no charge as part of servicing your policy. A charge per certificate is unusual.
Q: Do I need a certificate before a cabinet dealer will release my install work?
Most dealers ask for one first, made out in the dealer's legal name. They are hiring you as a subcontractor, so they want liability, workers comp, and auto on the same page as everyone else.
How Morrow helps
Morrow is a licensed independent commercial insurance brokerage that works with contractors and trades every day. Carpenters get certificate requests from builders, general contractors, and homeowners on every job, and our clients issue every one of them themselves.
- 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.