TL;DR. Require general liability insurance from every vendor whose people, trucks or products reach your job, not only the trades. Set per-occurrence and aggregate limits by risk tier. Add products-completed operations for suppliers. Ask for additional insured status, primary and noncontributory wording and a waiver of subrogation wherever your contract with the owner calls for them. Then check each COI and its endorsement pages against those terms before the vendor starts.
This article is general information, not legal or insurance advice. Your contract with the owner, your state’s law and your own insurance program decide what you should require. Review your requirements with your attorney and your insurance broker before you use them.
Why vendors who aren’t trades still need general liability
Most insurance exhibits are written for the trades. Then a supplier’s driver backs into a parked car at the gate. A consultant trips on rebar during a site walk. A rental company’s technician damages a finished floor while servicing a lift.
None of them signed a subcontract. Many signed a purchase order or a short vendor agreement with no insurance terms at all.
If that vendor carries no general liability, or carries it without naming you, the claim tends to land on your policy. That’s the gap a vendor requirement closes. General liability covers bodily injury and property damage to third parties that comes from the vendor’s work, products or presence on your site.
The question isn’t whether non-trade vendors need coverage. It’s how much, and which terms are worth chasing for each kind of vendor.
What to require, by vendor type
A single requirement for every vendor is either too heavy for a parts supplier or too light for a hauler running on site all week. Most teams sort vendors into tiers.
Suppliers who deliver only. Their exposure is the delivery and the product itself. Ask for general liability with a products-completed operations aggregate, since a defective product can cause a claim long after delivery. Many teams keep these terms lighter than the trades get.
Haulers and trucking vendors. General liability usually excludes injury and damage from using a vehicle. That belongs to commercial auto liability, and loading and unloading usually falls under the auto policy too. Ask for both policies, and check that the auto coverage is for the vehicles they will actually send.
Consultants, inspectors and testing firms. Their people walk the site, so general liability matters. But a mistake in their advice, design or test results usually isn’t covered by general liability. That’s professional liability, a separate policy. Decide whether you need both.
Service vendors on site. Equipment rental, temporary facilities, security, cleaning. They work around your crews and the finished work, often for weeks. Many teams put them in the same tier as a light trade.
Whatever tiers you choose, write them down once, in your vendor agreement or insurance exhibit, so every purchase order points to the same terms.
The terms to write into the insurance exhibit
The limit is only part of the requirement. These are the terms that decide whether the policy actually protects you.
Per-occurrence and general aggregate limits. The per-occurrence limit caps one claim. The aggregate caps everything the policy pays in a policy period. Set both for each tier.
Per-project aggregate. Without it, claims from a vendor’s other jobs can use up the aggregate before your claim arrives. An endorsement can apply the aggregate per project instead.
Products-completed operations. This covers claims after the product is delivered or the work is done. It matters most for suppliers.
Occurrence form. An occurrence policy covers incidents that happen during the policy period, whenever the claim is filed. A claims-made policy covers claims made during the period, which can leave gaps after the policy ends. Most GCs ask for occurrence.
Additional insured. Being named on the vendor’s policy gives you coverage of your own under it. Being the certificate holder does not. Name who must be added: you, the owner, and anyone else your prime contract lists. Say whether it applies to ongoing operations, completed operations or both.
Primary and noncontributory. The vendor’s policy pays first, without asking your policy to share the loss.
Waiver of subrogation. The vendor’s insurer agrees not to come after you to recover what it paid.
Notice of cancellation. Ask to be told if the policy is cancelled, and be clear about who gives that notice.
Check these against your prime contract first. Your owner’s requirements often flow down, and a vendor term that is lighter than what you owe the owner leaves a gap you carry.
How to confirm the COI matches
A certificate of insurance is a summary. The standard form says it is issued as a matter of information only and gives the holder no rights. What it shows is a starting point, not proof.
When a vendor’s COI comes in, check:
The named insured matches the vendor on your purchase order or agreement, exactly.
The policy is general liability on an occurrence form, with dates that cover the whole time the vendor will be on your job.
Each limit meets the tier you set, including the products-completed operations aggregate for suppliers.
The endorsement pages are attached. The box marked additional insured on the certificate is not the endorsement. Read the endorsement itself and confirm whom it schedules and whether it covers ongoing and completed operations.
Primary and noncontributory wording and the waiver of subrogation appear in the endorsements, not only in the certificate’s remarks.
The description of operations fits what the vendor is actually doing on your project.
For haulers, the auto policy is listed and covers the vehicles they will use.
When something is missing, tell the vendor exactly what to fix. A notice that names the missing endorsement and the required limit gets a corrected certificate faster than a request to resend.
Then track expirations. A vendor who was compliant on the first delivery can be uninsured by the last one.
Where Contracts Connected fits, and where it stops
Contracts Connected runs this check inside the vendor’s file.
Configure with AI reads your subcontract or insurance exhibit and sets up your insurance requirements. When the document leaves something open, it asks you instead of guessing.
AI COI Review then checks the COIs your vendors upload, and the endorsement pages sent with them, for coverages, limits, endorsements and the description of operations. It shows the endorsement’s form and whom it schedules.
Your team approves or rejects. On Reject, the deficiency notice is already drafted. You edit it and send it. The AI never sends it. You do.
Vendors get a link in their email, set up a free account from it and never pay. The vendor portal reminds them on Monday and Wednesday mornings until everything is in. One switch turns the AI off for your whole account.
Here is where it stops. Contracts Connected does not set your limits or choose your tiers. It doesn’t sell insurance or give legal or insurance advice. It doesn’t call the carrier to confirm a policy is in force, and it doesn’t decide whether a gap is acceptable on a given job. Your team, your attorney and your broker make those calls.
Frequently asked questions
Do suppliers who only deliver materials need general liability?
Most GCs require it, because the delivery and the product can both cause injury or damage on site. Many keep supplier terms lighter than trade terms, but ask for products-completed operations, since product claims can surface long after delivery.
Is general liability enough for a hauler?
Usually not. General liability generally excludes injury and damage from using a vehicle, and loading and unloading often falls under the auto policy. Ask haulers for commercial auto liability as well, covering the vehicles they will actually send to your job.
Does being the certificate holder make us an additional insured?
No. The certificate holder receives the certificate, and the form says it gives the holder no rights. Additional insured status comes only from an endorsement on the vendor’s policy that schedules you, so read the endorsement page itself.
Should consultants carry professional liability instead of general liability?
Often both. General liability covers injury and property damage when their people are on site. Mistakes in advice, design or test results usually fall under professional liability, a separate policy. Your attorney and broker can help decide which consultants need each.
Can software decide what limits to require from vendors?
No. Limits depend on your prime contract, your insurance program and the risk each vendor brings. Contracts Connected reads the requirements you write and checks COIs against them. Your team, attorney and broker set the requirements.
Check vendor COIs against your own terms
See how AI COI Review checks each vendor COI against your insurance exhibit, and how the vendor portal collects everything else a vendor owes on one tracker. Then book a demo and we’ll walk through it on your requirements.
This page is provided for educational purposes only and is not legal or insurance advice. Requirements vary by contract, project type and state. Confirm your requirements with your insurance broker and qualified counsel before relying on them.