CG 20 37: Additional Insured for Completed Operations

The CG 20 37 is the ISO additional insured endorsement that extends a contractor's commercial general liability coverage to a project owner, general contractor, or other party after the work is finished. It gives additional insured status for bodily injury or property damage caused by the contractor's completed work for that party, at the location shown in the schedule, when the injury or damage falls within the products-completed operations hazard. Account managers see it most often when construction contracts require completed operations coverage, and the client needs a certificate of insurance to back up that promise.

The endorsement is scheduled, not automatic. The named insured must list each scheduled person or organization and each location in the endorsement schedule (or the policy schedule). Coverage then follows the policy's occurrence trigger: the injury or damage has to happen during a policy period that carries the CG 20 37 endorsement. That coverage trigger is why contracts ask the subcontractor to keep the form in force for a specified duration after the job, often several years. After the policy expires, it doesn't respond to damage that happens later, so the renewal must carry the same wording. The CG 20 37 is not tail coverage and has no extended reporting period. Those terms belong to claims-made forms, where the retroactive date decides which past work is covered.

The CG 20 10 and the CG 20 37 differ in timing. The CG 20 10 covers ongoing operations, the active work phases before project completion. Once the work is finished or put to its intended use (not at final inspection or project wrap-up), the CG 20 37 covers liability arising from injury or damage caused by that work, including construction defect claims tied to the long-tail nature of latent defects. Most contracts ask for both, so expect to see "CG 20 10 and CG 20 37" together on the same certificate request. Editions matter. The CG 20 37 07 04 edition still carries an ISO Properties, Inc. copyright line. The CG 20 37 04 13 edition added two limits that the CG 20 37 12 19 edition keeps: coverage applies only to the extent permitted by law, and it is no broader than what the contract requires. The most the insurer pays to the additional insured is the lesser of the contract amount and the policy limits. (form text, 12 19 edition)

Since 2019, ISO has also offered an automatic additional insured option for completed operations. The CG 20 40 grants status to any party the named insured must cover under a written construction agreement, including parties beyond its direct contract, without naming each one. It carries a professional services exclusion for architectural, engineering, and surveying work, so a design-build contractor should compare that wording with the contract before swapping it in. Insurance providers price these forms differently. Some charge an additional premium, and underwriting guidelines for high-risk construction such as roofing, foundation work, or electrical work can look at loss history first.

Here is a hypothetical example. A roofer finishes a warehouse roofing system, the owner signs off, and the job closes. Eighteen months later, a seam fails, and water ruins inventory. The property owner and the general contractor are sued along with the roofer. If the roofer's current CGL policy still carries a CG 20 37 that schedules both parties and that location, they can ask that insurer for defense and damages for liability claims tied to the roofer's work. If the renewal dropped the form, they face coverage gaps that no certificate can fix.

Before you issue certificates, work through this review.

1. Read the endorsementRead its language against the contract.
2. Confirm the detailsConfirm the edition and the scheduled names.
3. Diary the renewalDo it so contractual compliance does not lapse in year two.

That review is good risk mitigation.