How to know a cleaning vendor is actually insured

At minimum, a commercial cleaning vendor should carry commercial general liability, commonly written at $1 million per occurrence and $2 million aggregate, and workers' compensation at statutory limits for the state where the work is performed. Most facility managers also require commercial auto liability if the vendor drives to the site, and a janitorial bond or crime coverage, often $10,000 to $100,000, to cover theft by cleaning staff who hold keys. Larger accounts frequently require an umbrella or excess liability policy. Beyond the policies themselves, the important details are the endorsements: additional insured status naming the property owner and manager, a waiver of subrogation, and primary and non-contributory wording. Without those endorsements, a certificate proves the vendor has insurance but does not extend that protection to you.

A COI, or certificate of insurance, is a one-page document issued by a vendor's insurance broker that summarizes the policies in force: carrier, policy numbers, coverage types, limits, effective and expiration dates, and any endorsements. It is most often issued on an ACORD form. Facility managers require it because if an uninsured or underinsured vendor's worker is injured on the property, or damages the building, the claim can land on the property owner's policy instead. Requesting a COI that names the owner and manager as additional insured moves that exposure to the vendor's carrier. A COI is a snapshot, not a guarantee, which is why coverage should be re-verified when policies renew rather than filed once and forgotten.

Request the certificate of insurance directly from the vendor's insurance broker rather than accepting a PDF forwarded by the vendor, because a forwarded document can be out of date or altered. Confirm four things on the certificate: that the named insured matches the legal entity signing your contract, that the policy effective and expiration dates cover your entire service period, that limits meet your requirements, and that the additional insured and waiver of subrogation endorsements are actually attached rather than just referenced. Then set a calendar reminder for the expiration date. Coverage lapses are common, and a certificate collected at onboarding says nothing about whether the policy is still active eighteen months later.

Yes, and for multi-site portfolios it is usually the point. A single vendor agreement across markets consolidates invoicing, gives you one point of contact, and applies one written specification to every address, which is what makes site-to-site performance comparable. The practical requirement is that the vendor can actually staff each market with insured, vetted crews rather than subcontracting blindly to whoever is available locally. Ask how coverage is verified in each market and whether the certificate of insurance requirements are enforced identically everywhere. Wexley Facility Solutions operates this way across its active markets in Texas and Washington.