ACORD 25 certificate: the common errors and how to avoid them
The ACORD 25 certificate of liability insurance is the form most agencies issue more than any other. It is familiar enough that errors creep in through habit. This guide walks the form section by section and lists the mistakes that come up again and again, and why each one matters.
A certificate that looked fine
A property manager rejects a certificate for a landscaping contractor. The certificate shows general liability and auto, with the property manager as certificate holder and "additional insured" written into the description of operations. The property manager's lease requires additional insured status on the general liability policy by endorsement, and a waiver of subrogation on workers' compensation.
Looking back, the certificate had three problems: additional insured was written in the description rather than marked in the ADDL INSD column against the policy that actually carries the endorsement, workers' compensation was left off because it was written with a different carrier, and the description promised "primary and non-contributory" coverage that the policy did not provide. Each one is a common ACORD 25 error.
Producer, insured and insurers
- Producer contact details out of date, so the holder cannot reach the agency.
- The insured's name does not match the named insured on the policy, or a DBA is missing.
- Insurer letters (A to F) do not line up with the coverage lines, so a line points at the wrong insurer.
- NAIC numbers missing or wrong.
Coverages
- Policy numbers or dates copied from an earlier certificate after a renewal.
- Limits that no longer match the policy.
- A coverage line left off because it is written with a different carrier, when the holder's contract requires it.
- Occurrence and claims-made boxes ticked wrongly on general liability.
- Umbrella or excess shown without the underlying policies that it sits above.
The ADDL INSD and SUBR WVD columns
These two columns are where most certificate disputes start. Mark ADDL INSD only on the lines where an endorsement actually provides additional insured status, and SUBR WVD only where the policy or an endorsement waives subrogation. A blanket endorsement may apply only where a written contract requires it; a specific endorsement may name only certain holders. When in doubt, check the endorsement, not the request.
Description of operations
- Wording that promises coverage, such as primary and non-contributory, where the policy does not provide it.
- Additional insured written in the description instead of marked in the column on the right policy.
- Contract wording pasted in whole, truncated by the box, so it reads differently from what was intended. Use an additional remarks schedule (ACORD 101) for long wording.
- Job, location or project details that do not match what the holder asked for.
Certificate holder and cancellation
- Holder name or address not exactly as requested, so the holder's compliance system cannot match it.
- The standard cancellation wording altered to promise notice the policy does not provide.
- A signature from someone not authorized to sign certificates for the agency.
Using the right edition
ACORD updates its forms from time to time, and carriers and holders may expect the current edition. Use the edition your AMS and carriers support, and do not edit the form's printed wording. If your system produces certificates from an old edition, ask your AMS vendor about updating it.
Errors that come from the request, not the form
Some certificate errors happen before anyone opens the form. The request asks for one holder, but the sample attached shows another. The insured asks for a certificate for a project that is outside the operations described on the policy. A holder's contract requires a coverage, such as professional liability or pollution, that the ACORD 25 does not report at all and needs a different form or a separate letter from the carrier.
Read the whole request and every attachment before starting. If the request and the sample disagree, ask. If the project is outside the insured's described operations, involve the account manager before issuing anything. If the required coverage is not a liability line on the ACORD 25, use the right form or ask the carrier, rather than writing it into the description of operations.
Reviewing a certificate quickly
A second person does not need to redo the work to catch most errors. A fast review reads the form in this order: the insured name against the policy; each policy's dates against today; each limit against the policy; the ADDL INSD and SUBR WVD columns against the endorsements; the description against the request; the holder against the request; and the signature. Seven checks, in a fixed order, take a couple of minutes and catch the errors that cause most of the trouble.
Keep the review on the record: who reviewed, when, and anything they changed. If your system records approvals, use it; if not, a note on the activity is better than nothing.
How to make these errors rare
Most ACORD 25 errors come from typing, copying or rushing, not from not knowing the form. The fixes are a current master certificate per insured, values pulled from the record rather than an old PDF, a checklist that names the columns above, and a second person on certificates with additional insured, waiver or special wording. Shlix IBS drafts from the record, marks the columns from the endorsements it is given, and stops when a check fails rather than guessing.
ACORD 25 field checklist
Top of the form
- Producer contact current
- Insured name matches policy, with DBA
- Insurer letters match coverage lines
- NAIC numbers present
Coverages
- Numbers and dates from the current policy
- Limits match
- All required lines shown
- Occurrence or claims-made correct
- Umbrella with its underlying
Columns and description
- ADDL INSD only where endorsed
- SUBR WVD only where provided
- No promises the policy does not make
- Long wording on ACORD 101
Bottom of the form
- Holder exactly as requested
- Standard cancellation wording
- Authorized signature
- Current form edition
Download this checklist as a PDF (one page, free, no sign-up).
Common mistakes and what they cost
Each of these is a common route to an errors-and-omissions (E&O) problem. None of it is legal advice; follow your carriers' rules and your agency's procedures.
- Additional insured written in the description. The holder may reject the certificate, or rely on it believing it has status it does not. Either way the agency's document is the problem.
- Promising primary and non-contributory. If the policy does not provide it, the certificate misstates coverage and the holder may look to the agency.
- Old limits after renewal. A holder relying on higher limits that no longer exist is a classic certificate E&O scenario.
- Editing the cancellation clause. Creates a notice promise the carrier never made.
Questions
What is the ACORD 25 used for?+
It is the standard certificate of liability insurance, summarizing general liability, auto, umbrella and workers' compensation coverage for a certificate holder.
Does marking ADDL INSD make the holder an additional insured?+
No. The column reports status provided by an endorsement. Without the endorsement there is no additional insured status, whatever the certificate says.
What is the ACORD 101?+
The additional remarks schedule, used when the description of operations or other information does not fit on the certificate.
Can we add wording the holder's contract requires?+
You can describe the operations, project or location the holder asks for. You should not add wording that states or implies coverage the policy and its endorsements do not provide. If the contract requires more than the policy gives, that is a coverage conversation with the insured.
Is property coverage shown on the ACORD 25?+
No. The ACORD 25 reports liability coverages. Evidence of property insurance uses a different form, such as the ACORD 27 or ACORD 28, depending on the request.