A licensed Georgia insurance broker who works with contractors is the person to call. The broker reads the insurance section, compares it to your policies, and orders the changes or new policies you are missing, usually free. Who this is for: Georgia contractors who just got a subcontract and are not sure their coverage matches it.
The short version
- Start with the insurance section. It lists each policy, each limit, and the extra wording your customer wants added.
- A licensed Georgia broker will usually read that section for free and tell you what your policies miss.
- Georgia voids any clause that makes you insure your customer for injuries caused only by their own fault.
- At three or more regular employees, no contract can waive Georgia's workers comp rule.
- Check the insurance company, not just the limits. Most Georgia contracts want a strong financial rating, and public work also wants an insurer licensed in Georgia.
Who actually does this work in Georgia?
Several people touch the insurance section. Only one of them can fix your coverage.
| Who | What they can do | What they cannot do |
|---|---|---|
| A licensed Georgia insurance broker | Read the contract, compare it to your policies, order changes, shop new policies, issue certificates | Change the contract wording |
| Your current insurance company | Add wording to the policies it already writes for you | Shop other companies when it says no |
| A Georgia construction attorney | Review the promise-to-pay wording and negotiate changes | Buy or change insurance |
What is in the insurance section of a Georgia contract?
Most Georgia subcontracts ask for the same four policies: general liability, workers comp, commercial auto, and an umbrella, which is a second layer of coverage above your other liability policies. Then come the extra words, and those cause most of the trouble.
| What the contract says | What it means in plain English | How it gets added |
|---|---|---|
| Additional insured | Your customer can use your liability policy if they get sued because of your work | A change added to your policy, usually one extra page, called an endorsement. Blanket wording covers the party you signed with. An owner, lender, or architect named in the exhibit each need their own endorsement, and extra names in the certificate's description box add nothing. |
| Completed operations | That protection keeps going after the job is finished | A second endorsement, and the one Georgia GCs check for most |
| Primary and noncontributory | Your policy pays first and your customer's policy does not chip in | Its own separate endorsement on most policies. A few insurers build it into their additional insured form, but do not assume yours did. Ask for the endorsement number in writing. |
| Waiver of subrogation | Your insurance company agrees not to go after your customer to recover money it paid | One endorsement on general liability, a separate one on workers comp |
For a deeper walk through the whole section, see what insurance a construction contract needs.
What does Georgia law say about the insurance clause?
Georgia will not let a contract make you pay for an accident that was entirely your customer's fault. A clause that tries to do that is void. You can still be asked to cover accidents your own crew caused, or ones where you were both at fault, and most contracts do. This rule does not touch project policies the owner buys, like builder's risk or a wrap-up (one insurance program the owner buys for everyone on the job).
A broker cannot change that wording. A Georgia construction attorney can.
Does the contract change what Georgia requires for workers comp?
No. Georgia requires workers compensation once a business regularly has three or more employees, including part-timers. Corporate officers and LLC members are covered by default and up to five can opt out with Form WC-10, but opted-out officers still count toward the three. Sole proprietors and partners are not covered unless they opt in.
There is a second reason Georgia general contractors will not budge. Under O.C.G.A. 34-9-8, a Georgia GC owes workers comp benefits to an injured employee of an uninsured sub on its project. That is why GCs want a certificate from every sub. See the Georgia workers comp overview.
How much does it cost to close the gaps?
No Georgia pricing is published, so these are national illustrative ranges for a small contractor with clean claims. Trade, payroll, and insurer move every line.
| Fix | Illustrative national cost |
|---|---|
| Adding the customer you contracted with as additional insured | Often free with blanket wording. Otherwise about $50 to $300 per customer. |
| Waiver of subrogation on workers comp | Usually 2% to 5% of the workers comp premium for that job. |
| A $1,000,000 umbrella | About $600 to $2,500 a year. Roofing and work at height cost more. |
Check what the contract demands of the insurance company itself, not just the limits. Most ask for an insurer rated A- VII or better, and public jobs add that the insurer be admitted in Georgia. A specialty (surplus lines) insurer is not admitted, so an umbrella placed there can pass the rating test and still be rejected. See who reviews a Georgia bid for free.
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 framing subcontractor in Marietta signs a $210,000 subcontract on a Cobb County townhome project. Exhibit C asks for $1,000,000 of general liability for any one accident, a $2,000,000 umbrella, additional insured for ongoing and completed operations, and waivers of subrogation on both liability and workers comp.
What went wrong: The sub's liability limit matches, but the policy has no completed operations endorsement and there is no umbrella. The certificate is rejected the Thursday before a Monday start.
What it cost: The crew sat six working days, about $7,800 in idle labor. Illustrative fixes: a $2,000,000 umbrella at about $2,900 a year, the completed operations endorsement at about $150, and an hour of attorney time at about $400.
The fix: Send the insurance and indemnity sections to a licensed Georgia broker before you sign. Every fix here was available in advance, and the idle week cost more.
Frequently asked questions
Q: Who can help me meet a construction contract's insurance requirements in Georgia?
A licensed Georgia insurance broker who works with contractors. They read the insurance section, compare it to your policies, and order what you are missing.
Q: Will a Georgia broker charge me to review my contract?
Usually not. Brokers read contracts free because it is how they learn what to place. Ask up front so there are no surprises.
Q: Can my customer make me insure them for their own mistakes in Georgia?
Not for injuries caused only by their own fault. Georgia voids that part of a construction contract. You can still be asked to cover your own fault or shared fault.
Q: Do I need workers comp for a Georgia contract if I only have two employees?
The state does not require it below three, but plan on buying it anyway. A Georgia general contractor is on the hook for your injured worker if you carry nothing, so most will not let a two person crew on site.
Q: What does the general contractor check on my certificate?
The limits, the dates, and whether the boxes for additional insured, completed operations, and waiver of subrogation are checked. The certificate grants nothing: a checked box is a claim that an endorsement exists, not proof. Many Georgia GCs now ask for the endorsement pages, and you should keep copies too.
Q: What if my insurance company is not strong enough for the contract?
Most Georgia contracts set a financial strength rating the insurer must hold, commonly A- VII or better. Public jobs usually add that the insurer be licensed in Georgia. A specialty insurer can clear the rating and still fail that second test.
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 Georgia contract, matching it to a policy, and placing what is missing is what our Georgia contractor clients most often ask us to 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.