Ask your broker for online access, then issue your own fence certificate in about a minute, free, any hour. A certificate of insurance is the one page summary of your policies, limits, and dates, and Morrow clients print their own at no charge. That matters when you run three small jobs a day. Changes that need an endorsement (a change added to your policy, usually one extra page) still go through the broker. Who this is for: wood, vinyl, chain link, and ornamental fence installers.
The short version
- Your broker issues certificates. Some brokers let you issue your own online, free, in about a minute.
- Fence work means many small jobs, so you send more certificates than trades with bigger tickets.
- Hitting a buried gas, power, or cable line is the claim that defines this trade.
- Some liability policies leave out damage to underground pipes and wires, so check yours before you dig.
- Naming a customer on the certificate is fast. Adding them to the policy is a change your broker makes.
How do I issue my own certificate in about a minute?
- Sign in to the certificate tool your broker set up for you.
- Pick the policies, usually general liability, workers comp, and auto.
- Type in the homeowner, association, town, or builder who asked.
- Put the job address in the description box.
- Send it from your phone before you pull off the driveway.
You are printing proof of coverage you already have. See who issues certificates for free.
Why does a fence company need so many certificates?
Volume. A $3,800 backyard fence needs the same piece of paper as a $380,000 job, and you may do four of them a week. Each customer wants their own name on it.
| Who is asking | How often | What they check |
|---|---|---|
| A homeowner | Sometimes, and more often since online reviews | That you carry liability and workers comp at all |
| A community association | Every job in the community | The association named on your policy before you touch common ground |
| A property manager | Every property, every year | The right entity name on each certificate, often through a portal |
| A town or school district | Every contract | Higher limits, the town named on your policy, and sometimes an umbrella |
| A builder or general contractor | Every subdivision | Limits, dates, workers comp, and coverage that lasts after the job |
See whether you can get a free certificate for every job and, for town work, certificates for government contracts.
What happens if I hit a buried line?
This is the claim that shapes fence insurance. Post holes go three to four feet down, right where utilities run. Every state has a call before you dig law and 811 is the national number, though the notice time and who is exempt differ by state, so check your own. The locate is free, but it only covers utility owned lines. Private lines past the meter, like irrigation, an invisible fence, a gas run to a grill, or a line to a detached garage, are not marked, and those are the ones a fence crew hits most.
| What you hit | Typical bill | What else follows |
|---|---|---|
| Irrigation or a sprinkler line | $300 to $2,000 | An angry homeowner and a same day repair |
| Cable or fiber | $1,000 to $15,000 | The carrier bills you for the splice and the truck roll |
| Buried electric | $2,000 to $20,000 | Possible injury to your own crew |
| A gas line | $5,000 and up | Evacuation, the fire department, and a utility report |
Those are illustrative ranges. The important part is that some contractor liability policies exclude damage to underground pipes and wires. If yours does, a hit line is your bill, and no certificate wording changes that.
What limits do fence customers usually ask for?
Residential work rarely sets a number. Everything else does.
| Customer | Usual ask |
|---|---|
| Homeowner | No stated limit. $1,000,000 is normal to carry |
| Community association | $1,000,000 for one incident, $2,000,000 for the year |
| Builder or general contractor | The same, plus their company protected after the job is finished |
| Town, school, or state work | $1,000,000 to $2,000,000, often with a $1,000,000 umbrella |
| Pool and safety fencing | Same limits, but insurers ask more questions about gates and latches |
What holds up a fence certificate?
- The name is close but not exact. Copy the association or town name from the contract.
- The customer is not on the policy. Naming them on the certificate alone gives them nothing. Ask your broker to add them.
- Your policy renewed yesterday. Issue the new certificate the same morning and portals never flag you.
- The underground question. If a contract asks about damage to buried utilities, get the answer in writing before you bid.
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 two truck fence company in Arizona installs about 90 residential jobs a year, plus a handful for a large community association. The association asks for a certificate naming it before any crew enters common ground.
What went wrong: A gate replacement is scheduled for a Saturday after a storm. The certificate on file expired eight days earlier, and the management office will not let the crew in without a current one.
What it cost: The crew drove 40 minutes, sat for an hour, and went home. Two other jobs slid a week, roughly $2,600 of revenue pushed into the next month.
The fix: With online access the owner reissues the certificate from the truck in about a minute. The renewal date, not the paperwork, is the thing worth watching.
Frequently asked questions
Q: How can I get a free, instant certificate of insurance for my fence installation business?
Ask your broker for online certificate access. You type in the customer and the address and send it in about a minute, from a phone if you need to. Morrow clients do this free, at any hour of any day.
Q: Do homeowners ask fence contractors for proof of insurance?
More than they used to. Sending a certificate with your proposal costs you a minute and separates you from the crew working out of a pickup with no coverage.
Q: Does my insurance pay if I cut a buried cable line?
Sometimes, and sometimes not. Several contractor policies exclude damage to underground pipes and wires. Ask your broker to check that specific wording, because this trade hits lines more than most.
Q: Do I have to call for utility locates before every job?
Yes. Every state has a call before you dig law, and 811 is the national number, though notice times and exemptions differ by state. Remember the marks cover utility owned lines only, not private lines past the meter. Skipping the call also gives an insurer a reason to fight a claim.
Q: How many certificates can I send in a year?
As many as you need. A per certificate charge is unusual, and with self service a hundred of them costs you nothing but typing.
Q: Can I put two customers on one certificate?
You can list more than one party, but they each need to be on the policy for it to mean anything. For separate jobs, separate certificates are cleaner and take a minute each.
Q: The town wants an umbrella listed. What is that?
An umbrella is a second layer of coverage that sits above your other liability policies. Town and school work often asks for $1,000,000 of it. Illustrative only, that commonly runs a few hundred dollars to about $1,500 a year for a small fence contractor, and the price moves with your sales, your trucks, your state, and your claims history.
How Morrow helps
Morrow is a licensed independent commercial insurance brokerage that works with contractors and trades every day. Fence companies send more certificates for smaller jobs than almost anyone, so we set clients up to issue their own in about a minute, free, at any hour.
- 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.