An independent broker licensed in Florida will review your bid's insurance requirements for free. The review is how a broker learns what to place if you win, so send the insurance and bond sections and you get back what you meet, what each gap costs, and which items are bonds rather than insurance. Who this is for: a Florida contractor with a bid due soon who needs the insurance priced before putting a number on it.
The short version
- Independent brokers review bid insurance requirements for free. Attorneys charge by the hour and do not price insurance.
- You do not need to buy the insurance before you bid. You need its price, and proof you can get it.
- On Florida public jobs a payment and performance bond for the full contract price is due before work starts.
- Ask for a written cost estimate so you can build it into your bid number.
- Send the documents a week before the due date. Umbrella and pollution quotes take time.
Who will review a Florida bid's insurance requirements, and who charges?
| Who | Cost | What you get |
|---|---|---|
| Independent broker licensed in Florida | Free | A plain English markup: what you meet, what you do not, and what each fix costs |
| Construction attorney | Hourly, often several hundred dollars | Advice on contract terms and indemnity (your promise to cover someone else's losses) |
| Surety bond agent | Free | Whether you qualify for the bond and what it costs |
National version: who reviews a bid's insurance requirements for free. Below is what changes in Florida.
What should the review catch on a Florida bid?
| Item | What to check | Florida note |
|---|---|---|
| Liability limits | Do your limits meet the bid? | Your license floor is $300,000 or $100,000. Bids ask for $1,000,000 and up. |
| Insurer requirements | Does the bid want an A- VII or better rating, and an admitted Florida insurer? | Specialty (surplus lines) insurers pass the rating test but are not admitted, so confirm before you price one in. |
| Workers comp | Do you carry it, and does the bid want a waiver? | Required in construction at one employee. A public owner will not take an exemption instead of a policy. |
| Your subcontractors | Will every sub have coverage or a valid exemption? | You answer for an uninsured sub's injured workers, and your audit picks up their payroll (F.S. 440.10). |
| Bonds | Is a bid bond (a promise to the owner that you will sign the contract if you win) required too? | A payment and performance bond for the full contract price, before work starts. Small jobs can be exempt (F.S. 255.05). |
| Indemnity | Does the clause make you pay for the owner's own negligence? | Void in Florida without a reasonable dollar cap in the bid documents (F.S. 725.06). |
Do I have to buy the insurance before I submit the bid?
No. You need it in force, with proof delivered, before work starts. Most Florida bid forms ask you to state that you will comply, and some want a letter from your broker saying the coverage is available. Before you bid you need a price you can trust.
Do not start work while the paperwork is pending. Insurers do not backdate. Anything issued after the crew mobilizes does not cover what happened first, and written permission from the owner does not fill that gap.
Bonds are the exception. A bid bond, if required, goes in with the bid. The payment and performance bond must be recorded before you start, and nobody can pay you until it is. State jobs of $100,000 or less are exempt, and local governments may waive it at $200,000 or less (F.S. 255.05).
How do I put the insurance cost into my bid number?
Ask the reviewer for the added yearly cost of each fix. The figures below are national illustrative ranges for a small contractor, not Florida quotes. What moves them: your trade, your payroll and revenue, the limit, your claims record, and the insurer.
| Fix the bid may require | Illustrative added cost |
|---|---|
| Additional insured for the party you contract with | Often free with blanket wording, otherwise $50 to $300 |
| Additional insured that continues after the job is finished | A separate endorsement, often a charge |
| Primary and noncontributory wording (your policy pays first) | Normally its own endorsement, sometimes built into a carrier's form |
| Waiver of subrogation on workers comp | 2 to 5 percent of the job's workers comp premium |
| A $1,000,000 umbrella | $600 to $2,500 a year, more for roofing and height work |
| Contractors pollution liability, $1,000,000 | $1,500 to $5,000 a year |
| Payment and performance bond | A percentage of the contract price |
Ask the broker in writing which of these your policy already has: a checkbox on a certificate claims an endorsement exists, it does not prove it. On a specialty quote add about 5 percent for Florida's 4.94 percent surplus lines tax plus the service fee. See how to include insurance costs in a bid.
What should I send the reviewer?
- The insurance and bond sections, or the whole bid package.
- Your declarations pages (the front pages showing limits and dates).
- Payroll by job category, revenue, and how much you subcontract.
- The bid due date and the start date.
Once you win, the same broker turns the review into the actual fixes.
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 contractor in Jacksonville is bidding a $1,200,000 package for a county school. The documents want $1,000,000 per occurrence and $2,000,000 aggregate general liability, a $5,000,000 umbrella, $1,000,000 auto liability, $1,000,000 of pollution coverage, and a full bond.
What went wrong: He carries a $1,000,000 umbrella and has never bought pollution coverage or a bond. Without a review he would have bid on his current insurance cost and found the rest after the award.
What it cost: A free review came back in a day with illustrative figures: about $8,500 more a year for the $5,000,000 umbrella, about $2,800 for pollution coverage, and a bond premium set on his financials. He built roughly $22,000 into the bid and won.
The fix: The review turned three surprises into line items. Send the package to a broker the week it arrives.
Frequently asked questions
Q: Who can review my construction bid's insurance requirements for free in Florida?
An independent commercial insurance broker licensed in Florida. They mark up the insurance and bond sections in plain English, usually within a business day.
Q: Do I need to have the insurance in place before I bid in Florida?
No. You need it before work starts. Get a written cost estimate first so the price is in your number, and ask your broker for a letter confirming the coverage is available if the form wants one.
Q: How much does a payment and performance bond actually cost?
It is a percentage of the contract price, set by the surety company from your credit, your financial statements, and your record. Small contractors usually see a higher rate. Ask a surety agent for a written indication.
Q: How long does a free bid review take?
Usually a business day for the markup. Firm quotes for an umbrella or pollution policy take one to two weeks, so send the package early.
Q: What if the bid asks for more insurance than I carry?
That is normal, and not a reason to skip the bid. The review tells you what the extra coverage costs so you can price it in. Owners accept reasonable changes more often than contractors expect.
Q: Does the review cover my subcontractors too?
It should. In Florida you must collect proof of workers comp or a valid exemption from every sub before they start, and you answer for an uninsured sub's injured workers.
How Morrow helps
Morrow is a licensed independent commercial insurance brokerage that works with contractors and trades every day. Reviewing Florida bid packages and pricing the insurance and bonds before the bid goes in is something we do every week.
- 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.