An independent commercial insurance broker licensed in New York is the person to call. A broker reads the insurance section, checks it against the policies you already have, and places whatever is missing. Morrow does that review for free. Who this is for: New York contractors holding a contract with an insurance exhibit they do not fully understand.
The short version
- A licensed independent broker is the one person who can both read the contract and fix the gaps.
- New York contracts ask for more than most states, because a state law makes owners and general contractors pay for a worker's fall even when the worker was careless.
- A general liability policy with an "action over" or "New York Labor Law" exclusion will get your certificate rejected.
- Workers comp is required from your first employee in New York. Disability coverage is a separate required policy.
- Send the contract before you sign. Fixes take one day to three weeks.
Who can actually help me with the insurance section?
Several people will offer. Only one can read the contract and also place the coverage.
| Who | What they can do | What they cannot do |
|---|---|---|
| Independent broker licensed in New York | Read the exhibit, compare it to your policies, add endorsements (changes to your policy, usually one extra page), place an umbrella, and deal with the general contractor's reviewer. | Give legal advice |
| Your current agent (one insurance company) | Add those changes and raise limits with that company. | Shop other companies if yours says no |
| Construction attorney | Advise on the promises in the contract. | Sell insurance or issue a certificate |
Why do New York contracts ask for so much insurance?
New York has a law that makes owners and general contractors fully responsible when a worker falls from a height or is hit by a falling object, even if the worker was careless. It is called the Scaffold Law (Labor Law 240). That is why New York contractors pay far more for liability and umbrella cover than contractors in other states, and why almost every general contractor contract asks you for three things: that your customer can use your liability policy if they get sued because of your work, that your policy pays first and theirs does not chip in, and that you promise to cover their losses.
Here is how it plays out. Your employee falls. He collects workers comp from you, then sues the owner and the general contractor. They hand the claim straight back to you, through the promise in your contract and through your own policy.
What do New York contracts usually ask for?
The national list is in what insurance a construction contract needs. These are the New York details.
| Item | What New York law says | What contracts usually ask for |
|---|---|---|
| Workers comp | Required from your first employee. If your sub has none, you pay the sub's injured worker (Workers Compensation Law 56). | Proof on state form C-105.2 or U-26.3, not an ACORD certificate, plus a waiver so your insurer will not chase your customer for money it paid. |
| Disability and Paid Family Leave | A separate required policy once you have had one employee on 30 days in a year. | The DB-120.1 certificate. |
| General liability | No statewide rule. A registered New York City general contractor needs $1,000,000 per occurrence. | $1,000,000 per occurrence and $2,000,000 for the year, with no Labor Law exclusion. |
| Commercial auto | State minimum is $25,000 per person, $50,000 per accident, $10,000 property damage. | $1,000,000 combined single limit. |
| Umbrella | No state rule. | $2,000,000 to $5,000,000. |
What should I check in my own policy before I send it to the general contractor?
Look for wording that cuts out claims where your own injured worker sues the general contractor and the general contractor comes back to you. Insurers label it "action over," "injury to employees of contractors," or "New York Labor Law." Any of the three, and most general contractors reject your certificate. Also check for a limit on how high your crews can work.
With no employees you still need proof on state forms, and a registered New York City general contractor cannot use the no-employee exemption form. See what insurance a New York contractor license needs.
What does each fix cost in New York?
There is no honest published New York price for these. Cover here is priced case by case, so a range would only mislead you. Here is what moves each price and how long it takes.
| Fix | What moves the price | Time |
|---|---|---|
| Add your customer as an additional insured | Often no charge if your policy already carries blanket wording, otherwise a small endorsement charge | 1 to 3 business days |
| Waiver on workers comp | A small charge worked out from the premium for that job | 1 to 3 business days |
| Replace a general liability policy that has a Labor Law exclusion | Materially more than the cheap policy. The gap depends on your trade, your height exposure, and how much work you do in New York City. Get it quoted, not budgeted. | 1 to 2 weeks |
| $5,000,000 umbrella | Priced case by case, and higher than in neighboring states. Ask your broker for a firm quote before you rely on a number. | 1 to 3 weeks |
Specialty insurers in New York add a 3.6 percent state tax and a small filing charge called a stamping fee. Ask for both as separate lines on the quote. Have your policy pages, payroll by trade, and last five years of claims ready and the numbers come back faster. For a bid package, see who reviews a bid's insurance requirements for free in New York.
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 masonry subcontractor in Brooklyn signs a $520,000 subcontract on a six story building in Queens. Exhibit B asks for $1,000,000 general liability with no Labor Law exclusion, a $5,000,000 umbrella, and workers comp proved on form C-105.2 with a waiver.
What went wrong: The sub's general liability policy has an "injury to employees of contractors" exclusion. His umbrella is $1,000,000. The general contractor rejected the certificate ten days before mobilization.
What it cost: The replacement general liability policy cost more than the cheap one, and the broker had to build the $5,000,000 umbrella in two layers with specialty insurers, plus the 3.6 percent state tax and the stamping fee. An idle crew of nine would have cost roughly $2,500 a day.
The fix: A New York broker placed both policies in twelve days and sent the endorsement copies to the general contractor. The sub started on schedule.
Frequently asked questions
Q: Who can help me meet a construction contract's insurance requirements in New York?
An independent commercial insurance broker licensed in New York. A broker reads the insurance section, matches it to your policies, and places whatever is missing. Morrow does this review for free.
Q: Does the broker charge for reviewing my contract?
Usually not. Reading the contract is how a broker learns what coverage to place. Morrow's review marks up the insurance section in plain English and lists the endorsements and limits the contract needs.
Q: Why does a New York general contractor care so much about my liability policy?
Because a fall claim lands on the owner and the general contractor first, and they pass it to you. If your policy excludes those claims, they reject your certificate.
Q: Can a New York contract make me pay for the general contractor's mistakes?
Not for harm caused by the general contractor's own carelessness. New York General Obligations Law 5-322.1 voids that part of the clause. Harm you caused, or partly caused, is still yours, so have a lawyer read a broad clause.
Q: What happens if I start work before the paperwork is in place?
You are uncovered for that gap. Insurers rarely backdate, so a change added to your policy after an injury does not apply to that injury, and written permission from the general contractor does not create coverage.
Q: How long does it take to fix the gaps a broker finds?
Endorsements usually take one to three business days. An umbrella takes one to three weeks in New York, longer at $5,000,000 or more. Send the contract the day it arrives.
How Morrow helps
Morrow is a licensed independent commercial insurance brokerage that works with contractors and trades every day. Reading a New York contract's insurance exhibit and closing every gap in it, including the Labor Law exclusions that sink certificates, is the most common thing our New York contractor clients 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.