Compliance
What Your Landlord’s Certificate of Insurance Actually Requires
The insurance clause in a commercial lease is short, dense, and non-negotiable. Here’s how to read it.
By Restaurant Insurance Authority Editorial Team · Reviewed by J. Robert Smith ·
Before you get the keys, the landlord wants proof you’re insured. The lease’s insurance clause is easy to skim and expensive to get wrong — a missing endorsement can hold up your opening.
When you sign a commercial lease, your landlord almost always requires proof of insurance. Expect to carry general liability at a set limit, name the landlord as an additional insured, add a waiver of subrogation, and deliver a certificate of insurance before you take possession. Property and, often, liquor liability round it out.
What the clause is really asking for
- A general liability limit — commonly a one-million per-occurrence, two-million aggregate requirement on your general liability policy.
- Additional insured — the landlord is added to your policy for claims arising from your operation.
- Waiver of subrogation — your insurer agrees not to come after the landlord to recover a claim.
- Primary and non-contributory — your policy pays first, before any policy the landlord carries.
- Property coverage — on your build-out, equipment, and contents via commercial property or a BOP.
- A certificate of insurance (COI) — the one-page proof, delivered before you take possession.
Additional insured vs. waiver of subrogation
These two are the ones people miss. Additional insured extends your liability coverage to defend the landlord if a customer is hurt on the premises. Waiver of subrogation stops your insurer from later billing the landlord for a loss you insured. Both are usually added by endorsement, sometimes for a small fee.
Get it right before you sign
- Send the lease’s insurance clause to your agent before signing, not after.
- Confirm your limits meet the required amounts and that the endorsements are available.
- Have the COI issued with the landlord’s exact legal name and mailing address.
- Deliver the COI ahead of your possession date so nothing delays the keys.
Bring the clause to a licensed agent and have the policy and endorsements built to match. Get a quote and you can hand your landlord a compliant certificate the same week.
Frequently asked
- What is a certificate of insurance (COI)?
- A certificate of insurance is a one-page summary proving your policies, limits, and effective dates. Landlords, vendors, and event organizers ask for it as evidence you’re covered. It is issued by your insurer or agent, not written by you, and it does not by itself change or extend your actual coverage.
- What does “additional insured” mean on a lease?
- Naming your landlord as an additional insured extends your liability policy to protect them for claims arising from your business at the leased space. If a customer sues over an injury on the premises, your policy can defend the landlord too. Most commercial leases require it, often alongside a waiver of subrogation.
- What is a waiver of subrogation?
- A waiver of subrogation stops your insurer from later suing the landlord to recover what it paid on a claim. Landlords require it so a loss you insured cannot bounce back onto them. Your insurer can usually add it by endorsement, sometimes for a small fee — confirm it before you sign.
Sources
- Insureon: Certificate of Insuranceindustryretrieved 2026-08-19
- Insureon: Additional Insured Endorsementindustryretrieved 2026-08-19
Hand your landlord a compliant COI
Send us the lease clause and a licensed agent will build the policy and endorsements to match — additional insured, waiver of subrogation, and all.
Talk to an agent who insures food & beverage every day
A licensed commercial-lines agent who specializes in restaurants and bars will review your coverage, close the gaps that catch owners, and show you what a program actually costs — before anything is bound.