Your broker or insurance company issues it, and a standard one should not cost you anything. A certificate of insurance is a one page summary of your policies, limits, and dates. A charge for it is unusual. Morrow clients issue their own online in about a minute, any hour, any day, at no charge. Only a policy change (called an endorsement) goes through the broker. Who this is for: excavation and trenching contractors sending proof of insurance to a contractor, a city, a utility, or a rental yard.
The short version
- Only your broker or insurance company can issue it, and a standard one should be free.
- Morrow excavation clients issue their own online in about a minute, day or night.
- Digging jobs ask for higher limits than most trades, and public work often wants $5,000,000.
- Many contracts want spills and runoff on the form, which your liability policy leaves out.
- Bids often need the certificate attached, so fix the wording before bid day.
Who asks an excavation contractor for proof of insurance?
Digging touches other people's pipes, wires, roads, and water. All of those owners want paper first.
| Who asks | What they want | When |
|---|---|---|
| General contractor | High limits, the contractor named on your policy, plus endorsement pages | Before you mobilize |
| City, county, or state agency | Their exact legal name, the contract limits, often a bid bond too | With the bid, and again at award |
| Utility company | Named on your policy before you work near gas, power, or fiber | Each work order |
| Equipment rental yard | Auto coverage plus cover for the machine you rent | Each rental |
| Soil or landfill site | Proof on file before they accept your loads | Once a year |
Public jobs have their own rules. See certificates for government contracts and surety bonds.
What does an excavation certificate need to show?
These are the usual asks. Private site work sits low, municipal and utility work high.
| Policy | Common requirement | Why it matters when you dig |
|---|---|---|
| General liability | $1,000,000 to $2,000,000 for one incident, $2,000,000 to $4,000,000 for the year | A cut water main, a collapsed trench, a damaged road |
| Umbrella | $1,000,000 on small jobs, $5,000,000 or more on public work | A cut fiber line bills by the hour and passes one policy limit fast |
| Coverage for spills and runoff | $1,000,000 or more, its own line on the form | Silt leaving the site, contaminated soil you dug up and moved, a spill from someone else's tank |
| Commercial auto | $1,000,000 to $2,000,000 combined | Dump trucks and trailers hauling machines and spoil |
| Workers comp | What your state requires, plus the part that pays if a worker sues you, commonly $100,000 each accident, $500,000 policy limit for disease, and $100,000 each employee for disease. Contracts often ask that all three go to $500,000 or $1,000,000 | Trench work is among the most dangerous jobs on any site |
One warning on that last row. The state funds in North Dakota, Ohio, Washington, and Wyoming pay nothing when a worker sues, so you need stop gap coverage there.
Why does my certificate need a line for spills and runoff?
Because your general liability policy leaves most of that out. Silt leaving the site, contaminated soil you dug up and moved, and a spill from someone else's tank are what the separate policy is for. Fuel escaping from your own machine is one of the few give backs the standard form prints, and a total pollution exclusion deletes even that, so ask which pages you have.
Two things about that policy. The lawyer's bill usually comes out of the limit, unlike your liability policy, so $1,000,000 is $1,000,000 for defense and payment together. And most are written on an occurrence basis, so the policy in place when the spill happens answers. If you do not carry one, no wording on the form creates it. See pollution insurance for excavation and sitework.
What can I issue myself, and what needs my broker?
| You can do this in a minute | This needs your broker first |
|---|---|
| Add a contractor, city, or utility as the name | Adding them to your policy so they can use it if they are sued |
| Type the bid or work order in the description box | Adding a policy for spills and runoff you do not carry |
| Send a copy to a rental yard or landfill | Raising a limit or adding a bigger umbrella |
| Reissue at renewal in a long dig | Cancellation notice wording a public agency demands |
What does an excavation certificate cost?
Nothing, in almost every case. What sits behind it can cost real money. These figures are illustrative for a small excavation contractor.
- Adding a contractor, city, or utility to your liability policy: often free with automatic wording, otherwise about $50 to $300 each.
- A $1,000,000 policy for spills and runoff: roughly $2,500 to $8,000 a year, with defense coming out of that limit.
- A $5,000,000 umbrella: roughly $6,000 to $15,000 a year, and fewer insurers offer it near gas or fiber.
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 excavation contractor in Florida bids a city storm drain job. The bid asks for $2,000,000 for one incident, a $5,000,000 umbrella, $1,000,000 for spills, and the city named.
What went wrong: He has liability and an umbrella but nothing for spills, and finds out two days before bids are due. His certificate is marked incomplete and the bid is thrown out.
What it cost: A $780,000 job lost outright, plus three days of estimating. The missing policy would have cost about $4,000 for the year.
The fix: On public work the certificate is part of the bid, not paperwork after the win. Read the insurance pages the week it drops.
Frequently asked questions
Q: How can I get a free, instant certificate of insurance for my excavation business?
Only the broker or insurance company that holds your policy can issue one. With online access you type in the city or contractor name and download it in a minute. Morrow clients do this at no charge.
Q: Should an excavation contractor ever pay for one?
No, not for a standard certificate. It is routine service on a policy you already bought. A charge is a reason to shop.
Q: Why do cities want $5,000,000 when my private jobs want $1,000,000?
Because public work sits in roads and near utilities, so agencies set one high limit for every bidder. They also set two tests for your insurer: a strength rating, commonly A minus VII or better, and that the insurer be licensed (admitted) in your state. A specialty policy often fails that second test.
Q: What happens if I cut a fiber line?
The utility bills for the repair and for lost service, and those claims run large and fast. That is why owners ask diggers for an umbrella above the liability policy.
Q: Does my liability policy already cover mud in a creek?
Usually not. Your liability policy excludes most spills, fumes, and runoff, so that risk needs its own policy. Check the form with your broker.
Q: Can I add the city to my policy today if the bid is due tomorrow?
The name goes on the certificate immediately. Adding the city to the policy takes one to three business days, and it does not reach back, so start it when you decide to bid.
Q: Do I need a bond as well as insurance?
On most public jobs, yes, and more than one kind. A bid bond is a promise that you will sign the contract at your price if you win. A performance bond is a promise that you will finish. Insurance pays for damage and injury.
How Morrow helps
Morrow is a licensed independent commercial insurance brokerage that works with contractors and trades every day. Excavation bids get thrown out over one missing line on a certificate, and lining up the limits and the paper before bid day is exactly what we 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.