Who is this guide for?

On almost every building job in Arizona, three kinds of people deal with insurance paperwork.

The subcontractor, or sub, is the company hired to do one part of the job, like framing, electrical, or plumbing. The sub gets asked to prove it has insurance. The ask often comes on short notice, right before the start date. If the proof comes back wrong, the crew waits and the job falls behind.

The general contractor, or GC, runs the whole job and hires the subs. Someone in the GC's office collects each sub's proof of insurance. That person checks it against the contract, sends back the ones that fall short, and chases the ones that never show up.

The owner, lender, or developer is the person or company paying for the project. They check the paperwork too, and they count on the GC to catch any problems first.

This guide is for all three. You don't need to know anything about insurance to read it. Every term is explained the first time it comes up, and there is a list of words to know at the end.

This guide covers one thing: the certificate of insurance. Other ForgeLine guides will cover the insurance itself, like Arizona Contractor Insurance: The Complete Coverage Map, and how risk passes from a sub to a GC to an owner, including how long to keep certificates, in The Subcontractor Risk Chain.

What is a certificate of insurance, and what does it prove?

First, a few basics.

An insurance policy is the contract between a business and an insurance company. It spells out what the insurance company will pay for if something goes wrong. The insurance company is often called the carrier. The person who sells and manages the policy is the agent.

A certificate of insurance is often a one-page summary of a contractor's policies. The law also covers some insurer- or producer-issued forms, questionnaires, and summaries, regardless of their title. The agent fills it out. In construction, it is almost always a standard form called the ACORD 25, Certificate of Liability Insurance.

The certificate shows:

• The name of the insured contractor
• Each insurance carrier and policy number
• The date each policy starts and ends
• The kinds of insurance: general liability, auto, umbrella, and workers compensation
• The limits, which are the most each policy will pay
• The certificate holder, which is the person or company that asked for the certificate
• A description box for project details and notes

A certificate reports insurance information as of the date it was issued. It can contain errors or become out of date. Check the policy and endorsements before relying on it.

Think of it as a summary, not a guarantee. It does not add coverage or give the holder rights beyond those in the policy. The ACORD 25 says so in its own fine print: the certificate is for information only and gives no rights to the certificate holder.

What a GC really needs from a sub's insurance lives in the policy itself and in its endorsements. An endorsement is a written change added to a policy. It can add a person, add coverage, or change the rules. The certificate points to the endorsements. The endorsements do the work.

What changed in Arizona in September 2026?

Arizona now has a law about certificates of insurance. It was House Bill 2996, signed on June 4, 2026. It added a new section to Arizona law called A.R.S. § 20-443.03. Its general effective date was September 12, 2026. It applies to contracts and contract changes (called addenda) signed on or after that date.

The Arizona Department of Insurance had already said the same things in a 2011 notice called Regulatory Bulletin 2011-01. The new law sets out certificate rules and enforcement powers in the statute. Here is what it does.

It says what a certificate is. A certificate from an insurance company or an agent is not an insurance policy. It cannot add to, stretch, or change the coverage. It gives the person holding it no rights beyond what the policy itself says.

It bans three things. No one may fill out, hand over, ask for, or require a certificate that:

1. Has false or misleading information about the policy
2. Adds to, changes, or stretches the coverage the policy gives
3. Claims the policy meets the insurance or indemnification requirements of a contract (indemnification means one party agreeing to cover another party's losses)

It limits who gets warned when a policy ends. A policy can be canceled, not renewed, or changed in a big way. Anyone other than the business that owns the policy gets a warning about that only if the policy or an endorsement gives them that right.

It can be enforced. The state agency in charge, the Department of Insurance and Financial Institutions, can order someone to stop. It can also fine them up to $1,000 for each violation. A certificate that breaks the law, whether someone filled it out, asked for it, or required it, is void. Other documents or correspondence prepared, issued, requested, or required in violation are also void. This does not mean an entire construction contract is void.

It covers every Arizona job. The law applies to any certificate for property and casualty risks located in Arizona. Property and casualty is the kind of insurance that covers damage, injuries, and lawsuits. It does not matter where the contractor, the carrier, the agent, or the person asking is based.

Two parts of the law matter most on a jobsite.

First, the ban covers the person asking for a certificate, not just the agent filling it out. Say a GC's contract demands a certificate that reads, "this policy complies with all requirements of the subcontract." That GC is now asking for something Arizona law bans. Many standard contract forms and checklists use words like that. They need to be updated.

Second, the law backs up what careful GCs already knew. The certificate is like a table of contents. The endorsements are the proof. The rest of this guide is built on that idea.

How do you read the insurance requirements in a GC contract?

The contract between a GC and a sub is called a subcontract. Its insurance rules are usually in one of three places:

• A section of the subcontract called "Insurance"
• A page added to the end, often called "Exhibit C" or "Insurance Requirements"
• A flow-down clause, which says the sub must follow the insurance rules in the owner's contract with the GC

If it is a flow-down clause, ask for the insurance page from the owner's contract too. The sub is agreeing to it, whether the sub has seen it or not.

Read the insurance rules before you bid. They cost money. A higher limit, coverage that has to last ten years after the job, or an endorsement your carrier does not offer can each change your price.

Look for six things in every contract's insurance rules.

1. Who has to be covered, by name?

The contract lists the people and companies that must be added to the sub's policy as additional insureds. That means the sub's policy protects them too. It is rarely just the GC. It often includes the owner, the owner's lender, the architect, the property manager, and each of their "officers, directors, employees, and agents." Check whether the actual endorsement covers each required person or company and whether its conditions are met. A name on the certificate does not establish that protection.

2. What limits, on which kinds of insurance?

Common types of insurance in a contract:

• General liability, which pays when the sub's work hurts someone or damages property. It usually has a limit for each event and a total limit for the policy year, called the aggregate.
• Products and completed operations, which covers claims that come up after the work is done. It has its own aggregate.
• Auto liability, for the sub's vehicles.
• Umbrella or excess, extra coverage on top of the other policies.
• Workers compensation, which pays for employees hurt on the job, at the limits set by state law. It comes with employer's liability, which covers lawsuits from those injuries.

Watch for a per-project aggregate. It may provide a separate aggregate for each project. Read the endorsement for project restrictions and any overall cap.

3. Which endorsements, by form number?

Most endorsements are standard forms written by a group called ISO (Insurance Services Office). Each one has a form number, like CG 20 10. Good contracts name the forms by number, and sometimes by edition date. The next section, What does each requirement mean?, explains each one. Sometimes a contract asks for an old edition that carriers no longer sell. Work that out with the GC before you sign.

4. For how long?

Ongoing operations coverage lasts while the work is being done. Completed operations coverage lasts after the job is finished, often for a set number of years. If the contract requires protection for ten years, ask your insurance team how the policy, renewals, and completed-operations terms address that requirement. One current certificate does not prove ten years of protection. See Arizona Construction Defect: Exposure and Coverage Response for why Arizona contracts ask for so many years.

5. What warning is required before a policy ends?

Many contracts say the GC must get 30 days' warning before the sub's policy is canceled. This is called notice of cancellation. Under A.R.S. § 20-443.03, the GC gets that warning only if the policy or an endorsement promises it. Typing it onto the certificate does nothing.

6. How big a deductible is allowed?

A deductible is the part of a claim the sub pays before the insurance pays. A self-insured retention works in a similar way. Some contracts set a cap on how big it can be. A policy with a large one can break the contract rules, even if every limit is high enough.

What does each requirement mean?

What does "additional insured" mean on a certificate?

An additional insured is a person or company, other than the contractor who bought the policy, that the policy also protects. Say a GC is an additional insured on a sub's general liability policy. Someone sues the GC over the sub's work. Whether the carrier must defend or pay depends on the claim and the policy’s terms, limits, exclusions, and conditions.

That protection comes from an additional insured endorsement added to the sub's policy. On the certificate, the column marked "ADDL INSD" and the description box only report that the endorsement exists. They don't create it.

These endorsements come in two timing types and two naming styles.

Ongoing operations covers the GC while the sub's work is going on. The standard form is CG 20 10.

Completed operations covers the GC after the sub's work is done. The standard form is CG 20 37. Problems with the work can appear after the job is over.

If a contract requires both, the sub needs both. A certificate that lists CG 20 10 alone does not meet a contract that requires completed operations coverage. That mistake usually comes to light years later, at the worst possible time.

A scheduled endorsement names each additional insured on the endorsement itself. Every new GC or owner means a new endorsement, and that means a call to the carrier.

A blanket, or automatic, endorsement may cover people or companies when a written contract and the endorsement’s other conditions are met. There is no new endorsement for each job. Two examples for ongoing operations are CG 20 38 and CG 20 33. There are blanket completed operations forms too. Check the exact form with your carrier.

Blanket endorsements make certificates much faster. They are worth asking for every time your policy renews. One catch: most blanket forms require a written contract signed before the work starts or the loss happens. Do not assume a handshake agreement meets those conditions. Check the actual form and the timing of the written agreement.

Edition dates matter too. The last four numbers on a form show its month and year. ISO updated the main additional insured forms in 2019 (for example, CG 20 10 12 19 and CG 20 37 12 19). Some older contracts still ask for CG 20 10 11 85. That is a 1985 edition. It covered ongoing and completed operations in one form. If a contract asks for it, check availability with the carrier. Ask your insurance team and the GC to review acceptable alternatives. A newer pair of forms may differ from the older wording.

What is primary and non-contributory?

Sometimes one claim touches both the sub's policy and the GC's policy. A standard rule in general liability policies, called "Other Insurance," can make the two carriers split the cost.

Primary means the sub's policy pays first. Non-contributory means the sub's carrier can't ask the GC's carrier to chip in.

How the policies share a claim depends on both policies and the facts. These terms do not guarantee that the GC’s own policy will never respond.

The standard endorsement is CG 20 01. It works together with the additional insured endorsement. On its own, it does not make anyone an additional insured. A contract that requires "primary and non-contributory additional insured coverage" needs both endorsements.

What is a waiver of subrogation, and why does my GC want one?

When a carrier pays a claim, it usually gets the right to sue whoever caused the loss to get its money back. That right is called subrogation.

A waiver of subrogation gives up that right against a named person or company. Say a sub's carrier waives subrogation for the GC. Then the carrier pays a claim the GC partly caused. The carrier can't turn around and sue the GC.

GCs want waivers because without them, a sub's own insurance could end up paying for a lawsuit against the GC.

Each kind of insurance needs its own waiver, and contracts usually ask for waivers on several kinds: - General liability: CG 24 04. ISO also offers an automatic version, CG 24 53. - Workers compensation: WC 00 03 13. - Auto and umbrella: forms written by the carrier or by ISO.

Check workers compensation waivers separately. A waiver on general liability does not establish a workers compensation waiver. Workers comp waivers also often cost extra, so put them in your bid.

What about notice of cancellation?

Contracts often require the sub's carrier to warn the GC 30 days before a policy is canceled. The standard ACORD 25 does not promise that. Its cancellation box sends the holder back to the policy's own terms.

Arizona law now settles it. A certificate holder gets a warning only if the policy or an endorsement gives them that right. If a contract requires a warning, the sub needs a notice endorsement from the carrier, if the carrier offers one. If the carrier doesn't, the usual fix is agreed in writing with the GC. Most often, the sub agrees to tell the GC directly.

What about umbrella, auto, and workers comp?

Umbrella or excess. Contracts usually require the umbrella to "follow form." Follow-form coverage may adopt terms from an underlying policy, but it can have its own conditions and exclusions. Do not assume the same additional insured, primary/noncontributory, or waiver terms apply. Not every umbrella does. Check the umbrella policy's wording.

Auto. Many contracts require the GC to be an additional insured on the sub's auto policy. That takes a separate auto endorsement.

Workers compensation. Arizona requires employers with employees to carry workers compensation, with a few exceptions covered in Workers Compensation for Arizona Contractors. The certificate shows the limits set by state law and the employer's liability limits. The waiver of subrogation above is the usual add-on in contracts.

What is the difference between a certificate and an endorsement?

A certificate describes a policy. An endorsement changes a policy.

That difference decides who pays when there is a claim.

Say someone sues a GC over a sub's work. The GC sends the claim to the sub's carrier and asks the carrier to defend it as an additional insured. This is called tendering the claim. The carrier reads its own policy. It looks for an endorsement that makes the GC an additional insured for this kind of claim, at this time, on this project. The certificate cannot replace the policy wording.

An endorsement alone does not guarantee a defense. The carrier must assess the claim, the policy, and any conditions. Missing completed-operations support or an unmet written-contract condition can create a coverage question. The certificate in the GC's file, no matter how perfect it looks, changes nothing. Arizona law now says so directly.

Here is how it plays out on a job:

The certificate alone could not answer the coverage question. The contract, policy, and endorsements needed a separate comparison.

How do you close that gap?

GCs: Ask for copies of the actual endorsements along with the certificate. Check them against the contract. The certificate tells you where to look. The endorsements tell you what you have. Many GCs now require endorsement copies before they pay a sub.

Subs: Keep a current set of your policy's endorsements ready to send with every certificate. It answers the GC's question before they ask, and it speeds up every approval.

How fast should a certificate request be turned around?

What happens between the request and the certificate?

A certificate request goes through four steps:

1. Request. The GC or sub sends what is needed: the holder's name and address, the project, and the contract's insurance rules.
2. Checking. The agent checks those rules against the actual policy. Does the policy have the right endorsements, on the right forms, with the right limits?
3. Issuing. If the policy meets every rule, the agent fills out the certificate. If it doesn't, the agent asks the carrier to add or change endorsements first.
4. Delivery and follow-up. The certificate goes to the person who asked for it, and the agent makes sure it was received and accepted.

Step 2 is where good agencies stand out. An agency that skips the check and fills out whatever is asked for turns out fast certificates that fail later. They fail at the GC's desk or when there is a claim. Under A.R.S. § 20-443.03, filling out a certificate that gets the policy wrong also breaks Arizona law.

What is a reasonable turnaround?

It depends on which of two situations you are in.

The policy already meets every rule. Blanket additional insured, blanket waiver, and primary and non-contributory are already on the policy. Then the certificate is just paperwork, and the agency still needs to check the request before issuing it.

The policy needs an endorsement added or changed. For example, a named additional insured, a new waiver, or a higher limit. Now the carrier has to act, and the timing depends on the carrier's review. Ask the agency what information is missing and whether carrier approval is needed.

The fastest certificate is the one that needs no call to the carrier. That is why it pays to review your endorsements when your policy renews, and to switch to blanket forms where carriers allow them.

What should you send with a certificate request?

Send all of this in one message, and most delays go away:

• The certificate holder's exact legal name and mailing address, as written in the contract
• Every person or company to be named as an additional insured, exactly as the contract names them
• The project name and address
• The whole insurance section or page of the contract
• The date you need the certificate, and the date the crew is set to start

Why do certificates get rejected?

These are common reasons a GC sends a certificate back.

1. The needed endorsement is not on the policy. The certificate shows the GC as an additional insured. But no endorsement on the policy covers them. Or it covers ongoing work only, and the contract asks for completed operations too.

2. The names don't match. A name on the certificate is spelled out differently than in the contract. For example, "ABC Builders" when the contract says "ABC Builders, LLC and its parent, subsidiaries, and affiliates." Office managers send these back, and they are right to.

3. A limit is too low. It is often the umbrella or the completed operations total. Or the per-project aggregate is missing.

4. A waiver or primary and non-contributory is missing on one policy. It's there on general liability. But it's missing on workers comp or the umbrella.

5. The dates are wrong. A policy ends before the project does. Or the certificate came from a policy that had already ended.

6. The description box promises contract compliance. Wording such as "coverage complies with all subcontract requirements" raises a concern under the law. A statement that someone is an additional insured is a separate question: check whether the actual policy supports it. A legitimate request to show existing coverage is different from asking the certificate to create it.

7. The contract asks for a form the carrier doesn't sell. The CG 20 10 11 85 is the classic example. Settle this with the GC, in writing, before anyone signs.

8. A cancellation warning is typed onto the certificate. Someone adds a "30-day notice" line, but no endorsement backs it up. It gives nothing. GCs who know the law will send it back.

What should a GC office manager check on every certificate?

• The names match the contract, word for word.
• Every kind of insurance the contract asks for is there. Each limit is as high as the contract asks, or higher.
• Check current policy dates. Separately track renewals and any required years of completed-operations protection.
• The ADDL INSD and SUBR WVD boxes are checked where needed. (SUBR WVD means subrogation waived.)
• Copies of the endorsements are attached. They cover ongoing and completed operations where needed.
• An endorsement backs up primary and non-contributory, on general liability and the umbrella.
• An endorsement backs up each waiver the contract asks for, including workers comp.
• The description box only describes. It does not say the policy meets the contract. It adds no warning promises.

What should you do next?

If you are a subcontractor: Before your next bid, pull your current policy and its list of endorsements. Compare what you have with the insurance rules in the GC contracts you see most. A gap you find now costs a phone call. The same gap found at the GC's desk costs a start date. Found when there is a claim, it can cost the business.

If you work in a GC's office: Update your subcontract forms and checklists for A.R.S. § 20-443.03. Take out any rule that certificates must say the policy meets the contract. Start collecting endorsement copies with every certificate.

If you want a first look: use Review My Document. Add a document or paste the words. Simple review checks selected wording patterns on your device and gives you a summary to keep. It does not confirm legal compliance or coverage. There is no cost and no need to book a call.

You can download the summary, discuss it, or ask the ForgeLine Team about a closer review. A full coverage review needs the actual policy and endorsements. The automated Deep review is not yet open to visitors.

Words to know

• Additional insured: a person or company, other than the policy owner, that the policy also protects.
• Aggregate: the most a policy will pay in total during the policy period.
• Agent: the licensed person who sells and manages a business's insurance.
• Blanket endorsement: an endorsement that may add coverage automatically when its written-contract and other conditions are met.
• Carrier: the insurance company.
• Certificate holder: the person or company that asked for the certificate.
• Certificate of insurance: a document that reports insurance information. Some producer-issued forms and summaries also fall within the law’s definition. It does not add coverage.
• Completed operations: coverage for claims that come up after the work is finished.
• Deductible: the part of a claim the insured pays before the insurance pays.
• Endorsement: a written change added to an insurance policy.
• General contractor (GC): the company that runs the whole job and hires the subs.
• General liability: insurance that pays when your work hurts someone or damages their property.
• Limit: the most a policy will pay.
• Notice of cancellation: a warning before a policy ends.
• Ongoing operations: coverage while the work is being done.
• Primary and non-contributory: the sub's policy pays first. The sub's carrier can't ask the GC's carrier to share the cost.
• Subcontractor (sub): a company hired by the GC to do one part of the job.
• Subrogation: a carrier's right to sue whoever caused a loss it paid for.
• Tender: sending a claim to a carrier and asking it to defend you.
• Waiver of subrogation: an endorsement where the carrier gives up its right to sue a named person or company.

Forms named in this guide

• CG 20 10: Additional Insured – Owners, Lessees or Contractors – Scheduled Person or Organization
• CG 20 37: Additional Insured – Owners, Lessees or Contractors – Completed Operations
• CG 20 38: Additional Insured – Owners, Lessees or Contractors – Automatic Status for Other Parties When Required in Written Construction Agreement (ongoing operations)
• CG 20 33: Additional Insured – Owners, Lessees or Contractors – Automatic Status When Required in Construction Agreement With You (ongoing operations)
• CG 20 01: Primary and Noncontributory – Other Insurance Condition
• CG 24 04: Waiver of Transfer of Rights of Recovery Against Others to Us
• CG 24 53: the automatic version of the CG 24 04 waiver
• WC 00 03 13: Waiver of Our Right to Recover From Others Endorsement