Why a certificate of insurance fails: every finding

This page lists every finding the rules can produce. On the subcontractor’s page you see the sentence, with Required and On file beneath it; the code under each heading is for reference, if you write to us about a finding. Severity depends on whether the coverage is mandatory in the template. On a mandatory coverage, a problem is Critical (or Cannot verify); on an optional one, the same problem is Info only and never changes the verdict or triggers a chase. See Verdicts explained. Amounts in a finding are written in your company’s currency. The examples on this page use US dollars.

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Summary

“Chased” assumes chasing is switched on and the subcontractor has an email address.

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No requirements assigned

Code TEMPLATE_MISSING. “No insurance requirements are assigned to this subcontractor, so compliance cannot be determined.” Without a template there is nothing to measure against, and reporting the subcontractor as compliant would be false. No other check runs. What to do: edit the subcontractor and choose a template under Insurance requirements.

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No certificate on file

Code CERTIFICATE_MISSING. “No certificate of insurance is on file for this subcontractor.” The subcontractor has a template but nothing recorded. The status is No certificate. What to do: record the certificate if you have it. If chasing is on, the subcontractor is emailed “Certificate of insurance needed” with an upload link, once, until a certificate is on file.

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Required coverage missing

Code COVERAGE_MISSING. “Umbrella / Excess Liability is required but is not evidenced on the certificate.” Required: Required. On file: Not on certificate. A coverage the template makes mandatory is not on any certificate in force. What to do: check whether the coverage came on a separate certificate, and record that one too. If it is genuinely absent, the subcontractor needs to obtain the coverage. Chasing asks for a corrected certificate.

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Coverage expired

Code COVERAGE_EXPIRED. “General Liability expired 12 days ago on 01-Mar-2027.” On the expiry date itself: “General Liability expired today, 01-Mar-2027: a policy ends at the start of its expiry date.” Required: In force on (today). On file: Expired (date). Policies run 12:01 a.m. to 12:01 a.m., so there is no cover on the expiry date. What to do: record the renewal certificate. If chasing is on, the subcontractor received the ladder of renewal emails and now receives the overdue email.

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Coverage not yet in force

Code COVERAGE_NOT_YET_EFFECTIVE. “Workers’ Compensation is not in force yet. It does not take effect until 01-Jul-2027.” Required: In force on (today). On file: Effective (date). No policy on file for this coverage is in force today, and the next one starts in the future, so the subcontractor has no cover on site today. This is treated like an expired policy. What to do: if an earlier policy covers today, record that certificate too; WatchMyCover then judges the coverage on the policy in force and the future one carries it forward. See Renewals and several certificates. If chasing is on, the subcontractor is chased straight away, as for a missing coverage, once for the certificate on file.

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Coverage expiring

Code COVERAGE_EXPIRING. “Automobile Liability expires in 21 days on 30-Apr-2027.” Required: More than (window) days remaining. On file: (n) days remaining. A mandatory policy expires inside your warning window (30 days by default, set in Settings → Renewal chasing). The subcontractor is still compliant today; the status is Expiring soon. If a renewal is already on file and starts on or before the old policy ends, the expiry used is the end of the renewal, so this finding does not appear. What to do: nothing yet. Chasing emails at 30, 14, 7 and 1 days before expiry, or on the schedule set under Settings → Renewal chasing.

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Limit below the minimum

Code LIMIT_BELOW_REQUIRED. “General Liability aggregate limit of $1,000,000 is below the required $2,000,000.” Required: $2,000,000. On file: $1,000,000. Checked separately for each-occurrence and aggregate limits. The first limit is named as the policy names it: each occurrence for most coverages, E.L. each accident for workers’ compensation, and combined single limit for automobile liability. What to do: first check the figure was typed correctly. If it was, the subcontractor needs higher limits (often through umbrella cover, which WatchMyCover checks as its own coverage). Chasing asks for a corrected certificate.

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Limit not provided

Code LIMIT_NOT_PROVIDED. “Workers’ Compensation E.L. each-accident limit is required but no limit is stated on the certificate.” Required: (the minimum). On file: Not provided. The template sets a minimum and no figure was recorded. For workers’ compensation this often means only PER STATUTE was checked on the certificate; enter the E.L. EACH ACCIDENT figure in E.L. each accident ($). Ticking Per statute on the form records that box but does not meet the minimum: statutory cover and the employers’ liability limit are different things. See Coverage types. What to do: enter the limit if it is on the certificate. If it is not, chasing asks for a certificate that states it. If your contract does not need the figure, clear the minimum in the template.

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Endorsement not evidenced

Code ENDORSEMENT_MISSING. “General Liability does not evidence the required additional insured endorsement (CG 20 10 / CG 20 37).” Where a standard form exists for the coverage, it is named, so the chase tells the agent what to issue. Required: Required. On file: Not evidenced. The template requires the endorsement and the evidence was recorded as Not on certificate. What to do: check the ADDL INSD and SUBR WVD columns and the description box. If the certificate states it, record it as Stated on certificate; if you hold the form, Endorsement form on file. Otherwise chasing asks for a corrected certificate.

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Endorsement stated but not verifiable

Code ENDORSEMENT_NOT_VERIFIABLE. “General Liability states the waiver of subrogation on the certificate, but a certificate cannot amend a policy. Request the endorsement form (CG 24 04) to confirm it.” Required: Endorsement form on file. On file: Stated on certificate only. The certificate says the endorsement is in place, but only the endorsement form proves it. The finding names the standard form to ask for, by coverage: for general liability CG 20 10 / CG 20 37 (additional insured), CG 24 04 (waiver of subrogation) and CG 20 01 (primary & non-contributory); for auto CA 20 48 (additional insured) and CA 04 44 (waiver of subrogation); for workers’ comp WC 00 03 13 (waiver of subrogation). Where there is no standard form, it asks for the endorsement form without naming one. What to do: ask the broker for the endorsement form, upload it, and record the coverage again with Endorsement form on file. Chasing sends “Documents needed to confirm …” listing each missing form. See Endorsements and evidence levels.

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Certificate too old, or dated in the future

Code CERTIFICATE_STALE. Too old: “The certificate on file was issued 400 days ago. It cannot confirm the policy is still in force today. Ask the broker for a current certificate.” Required: Issued within 365 days. On file: Issued (date). A certificate is a snapshot on its issue date, and a carrier can cancel a policy mid-term without the certificate changing. After 365 days it stops being evidence of cover today. The check uses the most recently issued certificate in force. Dated in the future: “The certificate is dated 05-Jan-2028, which is in the future. Check the issue date against the document.” Required: Issued on or before (today). This is almost always a typing error in the Issued on field, so it is not chased. What to do: for an old certificate, ask the broker for a current one and record it; chasing asks for it. For a future date, correct the issue date by recording the certificate again.

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Coverage carried but not required

Code COVERAGE_NOT_REQUIRED. “Pollution Liability is carried but is not required by this template.” Required: Not required. On file: Expires (date). Recorded for information only. It never affects the verdict, is not chased, and is not listed among the subcontractor’s problems. The sentence itself is kept on the record but not shown: the coverage simply appears in the subcontractor’s Cover in force card.

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Findings on optional coverages

If a coverage is in the template but not marked Coverage is mandatory, any of the problems above (expired, expiring, not yet in force, short limit, missing or unverifiable endorsement) is recorded as Info. It is kept for the record but never changes the verdict, never appears as a problem on the subcontractor’s page, in the verdict history, the export or a shared report, and is never chased.

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A finding you have accepted

A finding with an exception in force is listed apart, under Accepted for now, with the date the exception runs to and your reason. It does not count toward the verdict and is not chased. The day after the exception ends, it returns to the list above.

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References

• Avoiding Common Insurance Certificate Errors in Contracting Services. IRMI commentary.
• How the Limits Apply in the CGL Policy. IRMI commentary.
• Additional insured. IRMI glossary definition.
• Insurance Coverage: Waivers of Subrogation. IRMI commentary.
• Primary and Noncontributory. IRMI commentary.