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Insurance glossary · Contracts and certificates

waiver of subrogation.

The short answer

A waiver of subrogation is a promise, usually made in a contract, that your insurance company won’t try to recover what it paid on a claim from the other party, like the general contractor or property owner you work for. Your policy needs an endorsement to honor it.

Nick McClish, Managing Partner, Riza Risk (licensed insurance agency) · Updated September 30, 2026

Why do general contractors and property owners ask for a waiver of subrogation?

Because it keeps a claim on their job from coming back to them. Without a waiver, your insurer can pay your claim and then go after the general contractor or owner if their people caused it. With one, it can’t. That keeps a site accident from turning into a dispute between the companies on the job, which is why commercial subcontracts so often include it.

When is a waiver of subrogation required?

When a contract says so. It shows up in commercial subcontracts, commercial leases and property management vendor agreements, and often again on the certificate request. Homeowners hiring a contractor directly rarely ask for it. The contract’s insurance section says which policies it has to apply to.

Which of my policies does a waiver of subrogation apply to?

Only the ones the contract names and your insurer endorses. Contracts usually ask for it on general liability, workers’ comp, commercial auto and umbrella. Each policy needs its own endorsement, because each insurer is giving up its own right to recover.

How does a waiver of subrogation get added to a policy?

By endorsement. Workers’ comp and liability use separate endorsements (commonly WC 00 03 13 for workers’ comp, a Texas-specific form in Texas, and CG 24 04 for general liability), so a contract that asks for both needs both. Your insurer adds them, and the certificate is then reissued to show them.

Does a waiver of subrogation cost extra?

Sometimes. On general liability it’s often part of a blanket endorsement without a separate charge. On workers’ comp, each state’s rating rules allow a charge for the waiver, and the amount depends on the carrier, the state and your payroll. At Riza we show you what it costs before it goes on the policy.

What’s the difference between a blanket and a scheduled waiver of subrogation?

A blanket waiver covers anyone you’ve agreed in a written contract to waive against, so a new contract doesn’t need a new endorsement. A scheduled waiver names each party, which some carriers prefer and some contracts require. Which one fits depends on how many of your contracts ask for it and what your carrier offers.

How is a waiver of subrogation different from additional insured?

Additional insured gives another party coverage under your policy for claims tied to your work. A waiver of subrogation stops your insurer from suing that party to recover what it paid. Contracts often ask for both, plus primary and noncontributory wording, and each one needs its own endorsement.

Can the certificate of insurance just say there’s a waiver?

A certificate only reports what the policy says. If the waiver isn’t actually endorsed on the policy, the certificate doesn’t create it, and the gap shows up at the worst moment: after a claim. The endorsement comes first, then the certificate.

What happens if there’s a claim and the waiver isn’t on my policy?

Your insurer can still go after the other party to recover what it paid, even though your contract promised it wouldn’t. That can put you in breach of the contract, strain the relationship with the customer, and in some cases leave you responsible for their costs.

I already signed a contract that requires a waiver. What now?

The endorsement needs to be on each policy the contract names before work starts, and the certificate reissued to show it. If an insurer won’t add one, that’s a conversation to have with the general contractor early, not after a claim. Send Riza the contract and we’ll line up the endorsements with each of your insurers.

How does a waiver of subrogation work if I have no employees?

With no employees you may not carry workers’ comp at all, so there’s no comp insurer to waive anything. Some general contractors still ask for a comp certificate, which is where ghost policies come in. The waiver on your liability and auto policies applies either way.

Does a waiver of subrogation work differently by state?

In most states it works the same way, but not all. Kansas, Kentucky, Missouri, New Hampshire and Oregon limit or void waivers by law, New Mexico does for oilfield and mining work, and in the four states where workers’ comp comes only from a state fund (North Dakota, Ohio, Washington and Wyoming) the usual comp waiver endorsement isn’t available. The notes below cover Riza’s licensed states in detail and every other state in a line.

in the states where Riza is licensed.

Riza is a licensed insurance agency in New York, Colorado, Texas, Florida, Massachusetts, Arizona, Nevada, North Carolina, New Jersey and Georgia. Notes below cite the law they come from. Detailed write-ups cover Arizona, Nevada, Texas, North Carolina and New York. One-line notes for other licensed states appear with them when this term has one.

every other state.

How it works everywhere else, with the rule each line comes from. Riza is not licensed in these states.

by trade.

  • General contractorsYou sit in the middle: owners ask you for a waiver, and you ask your subs for one. Matching blanket wording on both sides keeps the chain consistent from job to job.
  • PlumbingCommercial plumbing subcontracts usually list the waiver next to additional insured and primary wording, most often for general liability and workers’ comp. Service work for property managers can ask for it too.
  • HVACRooftop and new-construction subcontracts typically ask for it on general liability, workers’ comp and auto. Service agreements with property managers often put it in the vendor terms.
  • ElectricalTenant improvement and new-build subcontracts commonly require it, usually alongside additional insured wording for both the general contractor and the owner.
  • RoofingCommercial re-roof and new-construction contracts often ask for it on every policy the contract lists, including the umbrella.
  • Landscaping and property vendorsProperty management vendor agreements often ask for a waiver in favor of both the property owner and the management company.

where you’ll see it.

  • Subcontract agreementsIn the insurance section, usually next to additional insured and primary and noncontributory wording.
  • Certificate requests“Waiver of subrogation in favor of the certificate holder” on the list of what the certificate has to show.
  • Commercial leasesLandlord and tenant often waive against each other for property damage.
  • Vendor agreementsProperty managers and facility owners ask their trades for it before they’re approved.

send us the contract first.

Before you sign, send Riza the contract. We read the insurance section, list every waiver, additional insured and primary wording it asks for, check which policies each one applies to, and line up the endorsements before the certificate goes out. One broker for every policy, so the endorsements match across all of them.

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Additional insuredPrimary and noncontributoryCertificate of insuranceHold harmless agreementBlanket endorsement

Coverage it touches: General liability · Workers’ comp · Commercial auto · Umbrella and excess