Contract & COI Requirements

Step by step

1. Each line the contract requires is compared with the corresponding limit carried; a requirement of zero is treated as not asked for.
2. A line is short when the limit carried is below the limit required, and the shortfall is the difference. Limits are compared per occurrence.
3. Additional insured status, waiver of subrogation and primary and non-contributory wording are each checked separately, because each comes from its own endorsement — and each counts only when you indicate the contract requires it.
4. Where you are not sure whether the contract requires an item, the row asks you to confirm the wording and is listed for attention, but it is not counted as a gap.
5. "Not sure" on whether an endorsement is in place counts as not in place when it is required, since an unconfirmed endorsement cannot be evidenced on a certificate.
6. Evidence of workers' compensation and employers' liability is checked the same way, as a certificate item alongside the endorsements.

The formula

Shortfall per line = max(0, required − carried). Endorsement and evidence gaps are counted, not measured.

Important disclosures

1. This tool is educational only. It illustrates potential exposure using the assumptions shown — it is not insurance advice, a price, or an offer of coverage, and it does not determine whether any coverage amount is right for you. Policy language varies; review your actual policy and discuss your situation with a licensed insurance professional.
2. Insurance clauses vary considerably. Some require limits per project rather than per policy, some require specific endorsement forms by edition date, and some require coverage to be maintained for years after the work finishes. Meeting the headline number is not the same as meeting the clause.
3. Limits here are compared per occurrence. Many contracts specify an aggregate as well (for example $1,000,000 per occurrence and $2,000,000 aggregate), and an aggregate already eroded by claims in the policy year may fall short of the clause even when the per-occurrence limit meets it.
4. Many contracts allow an umbrella or excess policy to make up a higher primary requirement, so a general liability shortfall shown here may be met by the umbrella you entered — provided the contract permits it and the umbrella actually schedules that line. Confirm both before relying on it.
5. A certificate of insurance confers no coverage and does not amend the policy. Additional insured status, waiver of subrogation and primary and non-contributory wording come from endorsements on the policy itself.
6. Evidence of workers' compensation and employers' liability is commonly required regardless of headcount, and a certificate cannot show a policy that is not carried. Whether the business is legally required to carry it is a separate question governed by state law.
7. Whether a particular endorsement can be added, and on what terms, is a matter for your insurer. This tool illustrates what a contract typically asks for, not what any policy will grant.
8. Nothing here is a review of your contract. Insurance clauses carry legal consequences and are worth reading with both your agent and, where the contract is significant, your attorney.