Additional Insured Endorsement Gaps
Contracts and leases routinely require vendors, tenants, and subcontractors to name the property owner, property manager, landlord, general contractor, etc. as Additional Insureds. That status extends the Named Insured’s liability coverage to those parties for harm caused by or arising out of the Named Insured’s operations, so that a claim brought against them is answered by the Named Insured’s policy rather than their own.
Additional Insured status can be required under General Liability, Umbrella Liability, and Automobile Liability and each policy has to satisfy the requirement on its own.
The Certificate of Insurance is Not the Endorsement
The Certificate of Insurance is a summary document. A line in the Description of Operations box stating that the required entities Additional Insureds describes what the broker understands the policy to do, but it does not itself amend the policy and it confers no rights.
The endorsement is the policy form that actually grants the coverage. It is issued by the carrier, attaches to a specific policy, and forms part of the contract of insurance.
When a requirement calls for an endorsement, the certificate wording alone will not close the gap. The endorsement form has to be provided as well. This is why a gap can remain open even when the COI clearly states that Additional Insured status has been granted.
Understanding the gap:
If the gap says | The issue is |
|---|---|
Missing a copy of the Additional Insured Endorsement | Separate Additional Insured endorsement form isn’t attached — Wording on the COI alone isn’t enough for this requirement |
Name of Persons or Organizations box on the Additional Insured endorsement must include “Entity Name” or Name of Persons or Organizations box on the Additional Insured endorsement must list all Additional Insured entities | A scheduled endorsement is on file, but not all required Additional Insured entities are named in its schedule |
Locations of Covered Operations box on the Additional Insured Endorsement is blank or Locations of Covered Operations box on the Additional Insured Endorsement lists an incorrect address | A scheduled endorsement is on file, but the schedule does not identify the correct location |
Policy number on the Additional Insured endorsement does not match the “Policy” policy number | An endorsement is provided, but it does not reference the policy shown on the Certificate of Insurance |
Additional Insured Endorsement for Policy cannot be accepted due to an invalid effective date or Additional Insured Endorsement for Policy cannot be accepted because the expiry date has passed | The dates listed on the provided endorsement do not cover the current coverage period |
Additional Insured Endorsement cannot be accepted due to an invalidating watermark | The provided endorsement is marked as a specimen, sample, draft, or void copy |
Missing Additional Insured Endorsement
A “missing” Additional Insured Endorsement gap is flagged when no endorsement granting Additional Insured status to the required entities has been included in the submitted documents. This gap can be flagged under General Liability, Umbrella Liability, and Automobile Liability.
See the examples below:
Incorrectly Filled Endorsement Schedule
Endorsements that include Schedule boxes must be filled in correctly with the applicable information to be acceptable. If the Additional Insured endorsement is attached but a gap for the Name of Persons or Organizations box is flagged, the required Additional Insured entity is either missing or listed incorrectly in the Schedule.
Many Additional Insured forms grant coverage only to the persons or organizations listed in the schedule, and only in connection with the location shown there. When the schedule is left blank, the required entities are not covered.
The schedule must name the actual entities required by the contract and identify the property or project the coverage relates to.
Wrong Policy Number on the Endorsement
An endorsement only amends the policy it is attached to. When the policy number on the endorsement does not match the policy number shown on the Certificate of Insurance, there is no evidence that the coverage applies to the policy in place for the contract term and the endorsement may belong to a prior term or to an entirely different policy.
Invalid Policy Period on the Endorsement
An endorsement grants coverage only for the period it is in force. When the endorsement’s effective date falls after the policy inception, or its expiration date falls before the policy expiration, the Additional Insured status does not span the full policy term shown on the Certificate of Insurance, leaving the required entities uncovered for part of the contract period.
This gap is most often seen when an endorsement was issued mid-term for a prior contract and then resubmitted, or when a renewal policy is evidenced with the expiring term’s endorsement.
Invalidating Watermark on the Endorsement
Endorsements are sometimes submitted as blank forms or unissued copies, marked with wording such as Specimen, Sample, Draft, For Illustration Only, or Void. These markings indicate that the document has not been issued against the policy, so it cannot be relied on as proof of coverage no matter how complete the rest of the form appears.
Before Resubmitting
Small details are a common cause of repeat gaps — a provision written for only one policy, or an endorsement that names the wrong party. The list below summarizes what should be confirmed before the corrected documents are submitted.
- If an endorsement is specifically required, it is attached — wording on the certificate alone is not sufficient
- The endorsement references the applicable policy and states the coverage is both primary and non-contributory — one term alone is not enough
- The endorsement carries no SAMPLE, SPECIMEN, DRAFT, or VOID watermark
- Any policy number, effective date, and expiration date printed on the endorsement match the information shown for the applicable policy on the certificate
- Where the endorsement includes a Schedule, all the applicable information is listed and spelled exactly as required. When applicable, the Schedule extends coverage to the required Additional Insured entities and locations
- The endorsement and certificate both fall within the current policy period