Short answer
A certificate holder is the party a certificate of insurance was issued to, and has no rights under the policy. An additional insured is covered by the policy itself, through an endorsement and within that endorsement's terms. To know which you are, ask for the endorsement page: the certificate cannot tell you.
What each term means
A certificate of insurance is a one-page summary of a subcontractor’s policies, issued by their insurance agent or broker. At the bottom left is a box headed CERTIFICATE HOLDER with your company’s name and address in it. That makes you the certificate holder: the party the summary was prepared for. Being named there does not make you a party to the policy, and it gives you no right to make a claim under it.
An additional insured is different in kind. It is a person or organization that is not the policyholder but is given insured status under the policy, usually by an endorsement, which is a page attached to the policy that changes its terms. If you are an additional insured on a subcontractor’s general liability policy and a claim is made against you over that subcontractor’s work, you can turn to their insurer, within what the endorsement covers.
The third term on the page is the named insured. That is the policyholder: here, the subcontractor.
The two side by side
| Certificate holder | Additional insured | |
|---|---|---|
| How you become one | The agent types your name into the certificate | An endorsement to the policy names you, or applies to you because a written contract requires it |
| Rights under the policy | None | Insured status, within the endorsement's terms |
| Can turn to the insurer over a claim | No | Yes, for a claim that falls within the endorsement |
| Where it is shown | The CERTIFICATE HOLDER box on the ACORD 25 | The endorsement page attached to the policy |
| What it is evidence of | That a certificate was issued to you on a given day | That the policy was changed to cover you |
What the ACORD 25 says about itself
The ACORD 25, the standard certificate of liability insurance, is plain about this. The notice at its top says that the certificate is issued as a matter of information only, that it confers no rights on the certificate holder, and that it does not amend, extend or alter the coverage of the policies listed on it.
What follows from that
What the ADDL INSD box is
Beside each policy on the form is a narrow column headed ADDL INSD. A mark in it is a statement, made by whoever filled in the form, that the policy includes additional insured coverage. It is not the coverage. The same notice at the top of the form says that if the certificate holder is an additional insured, the policy must be endorsed or must contain additional insured provisions, and that a statement on the certificate does not confer rights in place of that endorsement.
The mark may well be right. The form cannot show it: the box does not say which endorsement applies, to whom, or for which work. The endorsement page does.
A sentence is not an endorsement either
How to confirm you are an additional insured
Ask for the endorsement, not another certificate
Ask the subcontractor or their agent for a copy of the additional insured endorsement attached to the general liability policy. It is a page of the policy, with a form number and an edition date printed on it.Check which operations it covers
On the standard ISO forms, CG 20 10 gives additional insured status for ongoing operations, meaning the work while it is under way, and CG 20 37 gives it for completed operations, meaning the work after it is finished. If your subcontract requires both, you need both forms, or one insurer form that grants both.Check that it reaches you
A scheduled endorsement names the additional insured, so look for your company’s name. A blanket endorsement names nobody: it applies to any party the policyholder has agreed in a written contract to add. For a blanket form the signed subcontract is part of the evidence, so keep the two together.File it with the certificate
Keep the endorsement beside the certificate it belongs to, and check that the policy number on one matches the other. Ask again at each renewal: a new policy period is a new policy, and last year’s endorsement says nothing about it.
The help center has more on the forms themselves in Additional insured endorsements.
When the endorsement is missing or falls short
If the endorsement does not arrive, or it covers less than your subcontract requires, there is a gap between the contract and the insurance behind it. What to do about that gap is a business and legal decision: whether the subcontractor starts work, whether you accept it for a short time, or whether the requirement itself should change. Your insurance broker can read the endorsement with you, and your attorney can tell you what your contract and your state’s law make of it. This guide explains the terms. It is not legal or insurance advice.
Key takeaways
- A certificate holder was sent a certificate. That is all the term means.
- An additional insured has rights under the policy. They come from an endorsement, within its terms.
- The ACORD 25 says of itself that it confers no rights and does not change coverage.
- The ADDL INSD box is a statement. The endorsement page is the evidence.
- Ask for CG 20 10 and CG 20 37, or the blanket form together with the contract that brings it into play.
Common questions
Can a certificate holder make a claim on the policy?
Not by being the certificate holder. The certificate gives its holder no rights under the policy. A claim depends on being an insured, and for a general contractor on a subcontractor’s policy that comes from an additional insured endorsement.
Will a certificate holder be told if the policy is cancelled?
Not by being named on the certificate. The ACORD 25 says that notice of cancellation is delivered in accordance with the policy provisions, so whether you are told depends on what the policy, or an endorsement to it, says. If your contract requires notice, ask the agent how the policy provides it.
Can one company be both?
Yes. The two are not alternatives. You can be named as the certificate holder on the certificate and also be an additional insured under the policy. The first is paperwork addressed to you. The second is the protection, and it comes from the endorsement.