The CG 20 10 is the Insurance Services Office (ISO) endorsement that adds a scheduled party, usually a project owner or general contractor, as an additional insured on a contractor's commercial general liability policy for the contractor's ongoing operations. It responds to bodily injury or property damage caused, at least in part, by the named insured's work while that work is still underway. After the job is finished, the companion CG 20 37 endorsement takes over, so most construction contracts ask for both.
For an account manager or CSR, the practical question is rarely what the form is. It is whether the endorsement on the policy matches the written contract, names the right entity, and carries an edition date the contract accepts. That review is where most additional insured problems start, and where most of them can be stopped.
How the CG 20 10 Form Changed by Edition
- CG 20 10 11 85. The older form covered the additional insured for liability arising out of the named insured's work, with no limit to work in progress. Because "your work" includes finished work, this edition also reached completed operations.
- CG 20 10 10 01. This edition kept the limit to ongoing operations that ISO first added in the 10 93 edition, and it added an express exclusion for injury or damage that occurs after the work is completed or put to its intended use. The CG 20 37 was introduced at the same time to cover finished work.
- CG 20 10 07 04. The trigger changed from "arising out of" to injury or damage caused, in whole or in part, by the named insured's acts or omissions or those of people acting on its behalf. That change removed coverage for the additional insured's sole negligence.
- CG 20 10 04 13. Coverage now applies only to the extent permitted by law, is no broader than the written contract requires, and is capped at the lesser of the limits the contract requires or the policy limits. If a carrier attaches a later edition, compare it to the contract the same way.
Since the 07 04 wording, the additional insured is covered for vicarious liability and shared fault, not for its own mistakes alone. Some reviewers call this proportional liability, but the form does not split a loss by percentage, and courts differ on how far an "in part" claim reaches. If a contract only says "CG 20 10" with no edition, the 04 13 edition will usually satisfy it, so name the edition or wording in the contract when broader terms matter.
Reviewing a CG 20 10 Additional Insured Endorsement Request
Construction insurance requests usually arrive as a list of insurance requirements in a subcontract, followed by a request for a certificate of insurance. The ACORD 25 can show the additional insured box checked, but the certificate holder gains no rights from the certificate alone. Only the endorsement grants coverage, so send the form itself when the contract or the GC asks for proof.
The CG 20 10 endorsement is a tool for risk transfer, and it usually sits beside an indemnity agreement in the subcontract. That contract clause promises defense and indemnity, and the insurance endorsement funds part of that promise. Many states limit indemnity clauses in the construction industry, which is one reason the 04 13 edition applies only to the extent the law allows.
A scheduled additional insured endorsement names the person or organization, and often the project or location, in its schedule. Many carriers use blanket wording instead, such as the CG 20 33, which grants automatic additional insured status when a written construction agreement with the named insured requires it. That form reaches only the party in direct contract, so upstream parties such as the owner may need the CG 20 38 or their own endorsement.
Before you issue the certificate, compare the policy against the contract requirements line by line. Confirm the exact legal name of the additional insured, the endorsement form number and edition, whether the contract also asks for a waiver of subrogation and primary and non-contributory wording, and whether the required limits fit the scope of coverage the contract describes. Log any gap in your compliance tracking file and raise it with the underwriter before the subcontractor starts work.
Here is a hypothetical example. A drywall crew leaves a cart in a hallway on an active construction site, and a visitor trips and is hurt. The visitor sues the drywall subcontractor and the owner. If that trade contractor's CGL policy carries a CG 20 10 that schedules the owner, the owner can tender the claim to that insurer, because the injury was caused at least in part by the contractor's work. If the visitor tripped over the owner's own equipment, with no link to the contractor's work, the endorsement would not respond.
Plan for completed operations before the job ends. The CG 20 10 stops once the subcontractor finishes, but construction defects and other liability claims can surface years later. Ask whether the contract requires the CG 20 37 and how long it must stay on renewals. Good risk management means putting that renewal on the calendar now rather than finding the gap when a claim arrives.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is CG2010 the Same as the CG 20 10?
Yes. Contracts, certificates, and emails often drop the spaces, but it is the same ISO form. What matters more than the spacing is the edition, because the policy language changed in 1993, 2001, 2004, and 2013, 2019, and an older or newer edition may not match what the contract requires.
Does the CG 2010 Form Cover Completed Operations?
No, not on the 10 01 and later editions. Those editions limit coverage to ongoing operations and exclude injury or damage that occurs after the work is finished or put to its intended use. The additional insured needs a separate completed operations endorsement for that period, or a blanket form that includes it.
How Is CG 20 26 Different From CG 20 10?
That form adds any designated person or organization and is not written around construction work. The ISO CG 20 10 is written for owners, lessees, and contractors, and it focuses on the named insured's ongoing operations for that party. Underwriters may offer the general form when the party asking is not a construction owner or contractor.
What Does CG 24 04 Add to an Additional Insured Request?
It waives the insurer's right to recover from the scheduled party after paying a loss, a provision ISO calls a waiver of transfer of rights of recovery. Contracts often require it alongside additional insured coverage, but it is a separate endorsement and does not make anyone an insured under the policy.
Does a COI Prove the Endorsement Is on the Insurance Policy?
No. A certificate only summarizes coverage and states that it confers no rights on the holder. To confirm additional insured endorsement CG 20 10 wording, ask for a copy of the endorsement and its schedule, then compare it with the contract. That copy also shows whether the liability coverage is scheduled or blanket and whether its coverage trigger matches the work.
