Short answer
A per project aggregate gives each construction project its own general aggregate limit on a subcontractor's general liability policy, so claims on other jobs cannot use up yours. It comes from an endorsement, ISO form CG 25 03 or an equivalent form the insurer issues, and it does not change the completed operations aggregate. The PROJECT box on a certificate only states it: the endorsement page is the proof.
The problem: one aggregate for every job
Two of the limits on a general liability policy matter here. The each occurrence limit is the most it pays for one incident. The general aggregate is the most it pays in a policy period for all claims together, apart from products and completed operations claims. Those have an aggregate of their own.
A subcontractor has one policy and several jobs. Unless the policy says otherwise, every job draws on the same general aggregate. The certificate will not tell you how much of it is left. The ACORD 25 says in its own text that the limits shown may have been reduced by paid claims.
Watch for
What CG 25 03 is
The fix is an endorsement: a page attached to the policy that changes its terms. The standard one is CG 25 03, Designated Construction Project(s) General Aggregate Limit, a form published by ISO, the Insurance Services Office. When a contract asks for a “per project aggregate”, this form, or an equivalent form the insurer issues under another number, is what provides it.
On the 05 09 edition of CG 25 03, each construction project designated in the form’s schedule gets a separate general aggregate. It is equal to the general aggregate shown in the policy’s declarations. A payment for a claim that comes only from ongoing operations (work still under way) at one designated project reduces that project’s limit. It does not reduce the policy’s general aggregate, and it does not reduce any other project’s limit.
There is a sister form for places: CG 25 04, Designated Location(s) General Aggregate Limit. It gives a separate general aggregate to each location on its schedule. The Big I, the national association of independent insurance agents and brokers, describes CG 25 04 as a premises endorsement, for places the policyholder owns, leases or rents. It describes CG 25 03 as the one for ongoing construction operations. If your contract asks for a per project aggregate and you are sent CG 25 04, ask your broker whether it meets the contract before you accept it.
What it changes and what it leaves alone
CG 25 03 changes one thing: which general aggregate pays a claim from work under way on a designated project. The policy’s other limits stay as they were.
- The each occurrence limit still applies. One incident is capped at that figure, with or without the endorsement.
- The completed operations aggregate is not changed. Injury or damage that happens after the work is finished, as the policy defines finished, falls under products and completed operations. Those claims are still paid from one aggregate, shared across all of the subcontractor’s finished work.
- A claim that cannot be tied to one designated project is paid from the policy’s ordinary aggregates.
- A project that is not designated gets no limit of its own.
The completed operations gap
Per policy and per project, side by side
A made-up example
| Per policy | Per project (CG 25 03 or equivalent) | |
|---|---|---|
| General aggregate | One $2,000,000 limit for every job in the policy period | $2,000,000 for each designated project, and the policy's own $2,000,000 for everything else |
| After $1,700,000 is paid on the other project | $300,000 is left, for every job | The other project has $300,000 left. Yours still has $2,000,000 |
| The $700,000 claim on your project | The policy pays $300,000. The other $400,000 is not paid by this policy | The policy pays $700,000 |
| Each occurrence limit | $1,000,000 | $1,000,000. The endorsement does not raise it |
| Injury or damage after the work is finished | Paid from the completed operations aggregate, shared across all finished work | The same. The endorsement does not change it |
In the per policy column, the $400,000 shortfall on your project comes entirely from claims on someone else’s.
How it shows on a certificate
On the ACORD 25, in the general liability row, a line reads GEN’L AGGREGATE LIMIT APPLIES PER. Under it are three boxes, POLICY, PROJECT (printed as PRO-JECT) and LOC, and a space marked OTHER. That is how the line reads on the 2014/01 and 2016/03 editions of the form. A mark in POLICY says the policy has one general aggregate for everything. A mark in PROJECT says it applies per project. A mark in LOC says it applies per location.
The mark is a statement by whoever filled in the form. The certificate says at its top that it is issued as a matter of information only. It also says that it does not amend, extend or alter the coverage of the policies listed on it.
A per project aggregate exists only if the policy provides it. The Big I puts it this way: per project and per location aggregates come from endorsements attached to the policy. The box also cannot show which form is attached or whether your project falls within its schedule.
The point
How to confirm it
Read what your contract asks for
Find the insurance exhibit in the subcontract. Note whether it asks for the general aggregate per project, whether it names a form, and whether it asks for the completed operations aggregate per project too.Look at the box on the certificate
If POLICY is marked, the certificate itself says there is one aggregate for all jobs. If your contract requires per project, the subcontractor can ask their agent whether the insurer will add a per project aggregate endorsement. If LOC is marked, ask the agent which endorsement is on the policy. If PROJECT is marked, go on to the next step.Ask for the endorsement page
Ask the subcontractor or their agent for a copy of the per project aggregate 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 that its policy number matches the certificate. The New York State Office of General Services hosts a sample of CG 25 03, if you want to see what the page looks like.Read the schedule
The schedule either names projects or uses wording that takes in all of them, such as all construction projects of the named insured. The named insured is the policyholder: here, the subcontractor. Your project has to fall within the schedule. If the schedule is blank, the form says the information is shown in the policy’s declarations, so ask for that page as well.Have your broker read an insurer's own form
If the page is not CG 25 03, ask your broker whether it does the same job. Ask two things: does each project get the full general aggregate, and does anything in the form limit the total paid across all projects?File it, and ask again at renewal
Keep the endorsement with the certificate it belongs to. A renewed policy has its own endorsements, and last year’s page does not show what is on it.
Please also send a copy of the per project general aggregate endorsement on the general liability policy (CG 25 03, or equivalent), showing [project name and address] within its schedule.
The line fits the note to the agent in our certificate request emails.
This is a check to make by eye. WatchMyCover compares the general aggregate figure on a certificate with the figure you require and gives the reason for its verdict. It does not read the PROJECT box, and it does not check for a per project aggregate endorsement.
When contracts ask for it
The requirement can reach a subcontract in two ways. An owner’s contract requires it of you and tells you to pass the insurance terms down to your subcontractors. Or you write it into your own subcontract, because your project is one of several the subcontractor has under way. IRMI describes the endorsement’s purpose in those terms: it lets a contractor meet a contract’s requirement to carry a stated amount of insurance for a specific project.
In a requirement table it appears as the words “per project” beside the general aggregate figure. Our sample subcontractor insurance requirements show it that way, on the highest of three example tiers only.
Whether to ask it of every subcontractor or only of some is a decision for you, your insurance broker and your construction attorney. So is what to do when a subcontractor’s insurer will not add it. What a contract requires, and what follows when the insurance falls short of it, depends on the contract and on your state’s law. This guide describes forms used in the United States. It is general information, not legal or insurance advice.
Key takeaways
- Unless the policy says otherwise, one general aggregate is shared by every job a subcontractor has in the policy period.
- CG 25 03, Designated Construction Project(s) General Aggregate Limit, or an equivalent insurer form, gives each designated project a general aggregate of its own.
- It does not raise the each occurrence limit, and it does not change the completed operations aggregate.
- The PROJECT box on the ACORD 25 is a statement. The endorsement page, with your project within its schedule, is the proof.
- CG 25 04 is the per location form. If that is the page you are sent for a per project requirement, ask your broker whether it meets the contract.
Common questions
Is a per project aggregate the same as a per location aggregate?
They come from different forms. A per location aggregate comes from CG 25 04, Designated Location(s) General Aggregate Limit, and applies to each location on that form’s schedule. The Big I describes it as an endorsement for premises the policyholder owns, leases or rents. A per project aggregate comes from CG 25 03 or an equivalent form, and applies to ongoing operations at a designated construction project. Whether a per location form meets a contract that asks for per project is a question for your broker.
Does a per project aggregate raise the each occurrence limit?
No. On CG 25 03 the each occurrence limit continues to apply, so one incident is still capped at that figure. What changes is the aggregate that payments for a designated project count against.
Does the endorsement have to name my project?
Your project has to fall within the endorsement’s schedule. Some schedules list projects one by one, and some use blanket wording such as all construction projects of the named insured. If the schedule is blank, the form says the information is shown in the policy’s declarations, so ask for that page.
The certificate has POLICY marked but our subcontract requires per project. What now?
The certificate is telling you the policy has one general aggregate for all of the subcontractor’s jobs. The subcontractor can ask their agent whether the insurer will add a per project aggregate endorsement. Once it is on the policy, ask for the endorsement page. Whether work starts or continues in the meantime is a decision for you, your broker and your attorney.
Sources
- CG 25 03 05 09, Designated Construction Project(s) General Aggregate Limit: sample form (New York State Office of General Services)
- Designated construction project general aggregate limit endorsement (IRMI glossary)
- General aggregate limit (IRMI glossary)
- Products-completed operations (IRMI glossary)
- Certificates of insurance: FAQs and answers (Independent Agent magazine, the Big I)
- Sample ACORD 25 certificate, 2014/01 edition (New York City Department of Youth and Community Development)
- Blank ACORD 25 certificate, 2016/03 edition (New York City Department of Design and Construction)
- ACORD changes limits wording on certificate of insurance (Big I New York)
- CG 25 03 03 97 with a schedule for all construction projects, Figure 1030.1 (Iowa State University, Institute for Transportation)