A small business accepts a contract that asks for a certificate. The required limits do not explain whether all contracted activities are insured.
Why the details matter
Make sense of general liability, professional services, and the risks that deserve their own insurance conversation. The useful starting point is a description of what happens in practice: who is involved, where the activity happens, and which agreements or responsibilities sit behind it.
Three questions to take with you
- Does the policy description match your actual services and products?
- What exposures need separate professional, cyber, or pollution cover?
- Do customer contracts require additional-insured wording?
Get the information together
Use current information. If a value, location, activity, or arrangement has changed, point that out rather than relying on the previous policy’s description.
- Business activities and products
- Revenue, staffing, and territories
- Customer contracts and certificate requests
- Premises and equipment details
- Claims and prior-policy information
Read the answer alongside the policy
A general explanation or a certificate may leave important questions unanswered. Ask which wording applies to the specific situation, what is excluded, and what you would need to do if something happened.
Before agreeing to cover
Confirm the named people or entities, start date, territory, limits, deductibles, reporting requirements, and total cost. Keep the proposal and answers for your records. Only the appropriately licensed provider can confirm an offer and arrange the policy.
Open your preparation checklist →