Ask every subcontractor for general liability, workers comp, and commercial auto. Match the limits in your own contract with the owner, or one tier below, and require your company on their liability policy during and after the job. Then collect the certificate and the policy pages behind it (the endorsements) before the first check. An uninsured sub's injured employee can become your claim, and their pay can land on your insurance bill. Who this is for: general contractors setting subcontractor insurance requirements.
The short version
- Ask every sub for general liability, workers comp, and commercial auto. Add pollution and a second layer of liability cover when your own contract does.
- Set limits that match your contract with the owner, or one tier below, so small subs can comply.
- Require your company on their liability policy during and after the job. Their policy pays first, and their insurer should not chase you.
- Collect the certificate and the pages that prove the wording before the first payment.
What is the minimum I should ask every subcontractor for?
Start with the three every trade should have. Add the others when the work or your contract calls for them.
| Coverage | What to ask for |
|---|---|
| General liability | $1,000,000 per occurrence (the most the policy pays for one incident) and $2,000,000 aggregate (the most it pays in a year), or what your own contract requires |
| Workers comp | Statutory limits (whatever the state law requires) plus employers liability (the part that pays if an employee sues) of $500,000 or $1,000,000 |
| Commercial auto | $1,000,000 combined single limit, including hired and non-owned auto (vehicles they rent or their employees drive for work) |
What wording should be on their liability policy?
Limits are half the job. Wording is the other half. Each item below is an endorsement, a change added to their policy.
| Ask for | Plain English | Common form |
|---|---|---|
| Additional insured, ongoing operations | You can use their policy if you get sued over their work while the job runs | CG 20 10 (names you), CG 20 33 (automatic, only the party the sub signed with), or CG 20 38 (automatic, and reaches the owner or lender your contract names) |
| Additional insured, completed operations | It keeps going after the job is finished, when most claims show up | CG 20 37, or an insurance company's own blanket version |
| Primary and noncontributory | Their policy pays first and your policy does not chip in | CG 20 01 |
| Waiver of subrogation, general liability | Their insurer agrees not to go after you to recover money it paid | CG 24 04 |
| Waiver of subrogation, workers comp | Same promise, on the workers comp policy | WC 00 03 13, or the form the sub's state uses. A few states use their own or limit the waiver. |
If your own contract makes you add the owner or the lender too, say so in the subcontract: the common blanket form only picks up the party the sub signed with. Both forms stop when the job is finished, so completed operations is a separate item. It is the line most often missing.
How do I set limits my subs can actually meet?
Copy the limits from your prime contract, the contract between you and the owner, as the ceiling. A $5,000,000 umbrella (a second layer above their other liability policies) is normal for a big mechanical sub and out of reach for a small painting sub. Many general contractors run two tiers: major subs match the prime contract, minor subs carry $1,000,000 per occurrence and $2,000,000 aggregate with little umbrella. Every tier gets the same wording.
What happens if a sub has no insurance?
- Their injured worker can become your claim. In most states a contractor who hires an uninsured sub is treated as the employer of that sub's workers, so your policy pays and the claim raises your experience mod (the multiplier on your workers comp price) for about three years. A few states work the other way, so ask your broker about yours.
- Their payments can become your payroll. At your premium audit (the year end check of your payroll and sales), a sub with no certificate on file is usually charged back to you. How much depends on your state's rules and on whether the sub supplied labor or labor and materials.
More: do I need workers comp for 1099 contractors.
How do I write requirements I can enforce?
- Put it on one page, an exhibit to every subcontract: limits, wording, documents, and the deadline.
- Ask for the documents by name: a certificate of insurance (a one page summary of their policies) plus every endorsement above.
- Tie it to payment. No certificate and endorsements on file, no first check.
- Accept blanket wording, then read it. A blanket endorsement adds the customer the sub signed a written contract with, automatically, and it is what most small subs carry. Check that it picks up anyone else your prime contract makes you add, and that completed operations has its own endorsement.
- Track renewals. A certificate is good only until the policy expires.
Checking what comes back is its own job: checking whether your subs meet the requirements.
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 New Jersey general contractor with eight employees hires a framing sub for $180,000. The sub's certificate shows general liability. The workers comp box says "exempt." Nobody asks why.
What went wrong: A framer falls from a second floor deck and breaks his back. The sub has no workers comp. Under New Jersey's rules the contractor counts as the employer, so the claim lands on his policy. He can go after the sub, which helps only if the sub has money.
What it cost: Illustrative figures: a $140,000 claim that raises his experience mod for three years, about $18,000 a year in added premium, plus $11,000 at audit when part of the $180,000 paid to the sub is charged back as uninsured payroll. Roughly $65,000 on a job that paid $22,000.
The fix: "Exempt" on a certificate is a question, not an answer. No check until the comp certificate arrived would have put the claim on the sub's insurer.
Frequently asked questions
Q: I'm a general contractor. What insurance should I ask my subcontractors for?
General liability, workers comp, and commercial auto, with limits that match your contract with the owner or one tier below. Require your company on their liability policy during and after the job, and collect the endorsement pages.
Q: Do I need a workers comp certificate from a sub with no employees?
Ask anyway. A sole owner may be exempt under state law, but the rules differ by state, and an exempt owner who brings a helper is not exempt. Many general contractors require a policy anyway.
Q: Why isn't the certificate enough on its own?
A certificate is a summary written by the sub's agent, not the policy. The endorsement pages prove the wording is really there. A checked box with nothing behind it protects nobody.
Q: Which subs should carry pollution coverage?
Ask demolition, excavation, abatement, mechanical, and roofing subs, and anyone using solvents, adhesives, lead paint, or silica. General liability usually excludes pollution, so it takes a separate policy, commonly $1,000,000.
Q: Can I just cover my subs on my own policy?
No. Your policy insures your business, not theirs. It does not pay their workers comp claims, and at audit an uninsured sub's payments can be charged back to you.
Q: Can my broker help me set subcontractor insurance requirements?
Yes. Your broker knows your prime contract, your own limits, and what the market will sell small subs. Send Morrow the contract and we will mark up the insurance section in plain English and say what to ask each trade for. No purchase required.
How Morrow helps
Morrow is a licensed independent commercial insurance brokerage that works with contractors and trades every day. Reading the insurance section of a general contractor's contract and saying plainly what a subcontractor's policy would have to show to meet it is a routine part of 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.