How do I check if a contractor has insurance?

A contractor's insurance status is the single most-faked piece of paperwork in residential construction. The certificate of insurance (COI) is a one-page summary document — easy to download from an expired policy, easy to forge with image editing software, and not legally binding on the insurer.

The only reliable way to verify insurance:

1. Request a COI naming YOU as the certificate holder, with your project address listed. Insurers generate fresh COIs in seconds — if the contractor provides one without your name and address, ask for it again with both included. This forces a fresh document from the insurer's system.

2. Call the insurance agent listed on the COI. The agent's name and phone are in the bottom-right corner. Ask: "Is policy [number] in force as of today, is the named insured [contractor name], is the coverage [type and limits] as listed, and is there a current cancellation notice?" The agent will answer; this is a standard verification call they handle daily.

3. Confirm both general liability AND workers' compensation. General liability protects you if the contractor damages your property or injures someone. Workers' compensation protects you if a contractor's worker is injured on your property — without it, the worker can sue you directly. In most states, any contractor with employees must carry workers' comp by law.

4. Confirm coverage limits. General liability minimums: $300,000 for small residential, $1M for most general contracting, $2M for high-value or commercial work. A "$50,000 GL" policy is useless on a $500,000 remodel.

5. Confirm the policy period covers your project duration. A policy that lapses mid-project leaves you uncovered for the back half of the work.

What Groundcheck (earthmove.io/trust) does NOT do: verify insurance certificates. Insurance verification is real-time data from a private insurer, not a public record. Groundcheck verifies the license-board-listed workers' comp status (does the state board show the contractor as having a current workers' comp account?) but cannot confirm the insurer's view of the policy. For project-critical insurance verification, you must call the insurer directly.

Common scam: contractor provides a real COI for a $1M GL policy that was canceled 4 weeks ago for non-payment. The certificate still shows the policy as active on its face — only the insurer's records show the cancellation. Call. Every. Time.