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Professional Liability for contractors

Errors and omissions (E&O) coverage for the professional services component of contractor work — the gap GL explicitly excludes. Essential for design-build, consulting, and project management, and increasingly required in GC subcontracts.

Professional Liability — contractor insurance

What it covers

  • Errors in plans, specifications, or designs
  • Project management and scheduling failures
  • Consulting advice that leads to client financial loss
  • Design-build professional services liability
  • Defense costs for professional negligence claims
  • Subcontractor professional liability in your chain

Who it’s for

  • Design-build contractors who provide drawings or specs
  • Project managers and construction managers
  • Contractors who write specifications or RFIs
  • Firms whose GC contracts require E&O coverage

Why CCA

  • Clear explanation of when E&O is needed vs. when GL is sufficient
  • Professional liability paired with GL for seamless coverage
  • Design-build programs that address both physical and professional exposure
Professional Liability — FAQ

Common questions about professional liability

If you provide any professional services beyond physical labor — design-build, specifications, project management, consulting, scheduling, commissioning — you have professional liability exposure that GL doesn't cover. The test: if a client could sue you for a bad decision rather than physical damage, you need E&O.

No — they cover different claim types. GL covers bodily injury and property damage from physical work. Professional liability covers financial losses arising from professional errors — a design that had to be rebuilt, a specification that caused a cost overrun, a management decision that delayed a project and cost the owner money.

Almost all professional liability policies are claims-made. This means coverage only applies if the claim is filed while the policy is active. When you discontinue the policy, you need a tail extension (extended reporting period) to maintain coverage for prior professional work.

Cost depends on trade, revenue, payroll, crew size, and loss history. We quote your actual operation in about 15 minutes — never a generic ballpark from a standard commercial form.

Yes. Contractors Choice Agency is licensed in all 50 states and writes contractor programs nationwide across every trade.

Typically 15 minutes on a call. We ask about your trade, revenue, payroll, loss history, and coverage needs — then come back with real quotes from specialty contractor markets.

Often yes. We have admitted and E&S markets for contractors with prior GL claims, workers' comp losses, or difficult project types. Tell us your situation and we'll find a market.

Usually yes. A coordinated program closes gaps between policies and is typically cheaper and cleaner than separate policies from separate carriers — especially at claim time.

A.M. Best ratings reflect a carrier's financial strength and ability to pay claims. We place coverage with A-rated carriers so the coverage is there when a completed-ops claim, a workers' comp injury, or a tools theft hits.

Occurrence covers claims from work done during the policy period, whenever filed. Claims-made covers only claims filed while the policy is active. For contractors with completed-operations exposure, occurrence-based GL is strongly preferred.

Yes. Some GCs require blanket AI endorsements; others specify specific endorsement forms (CG 20 10, CG 20 37). We review your subcontract requirements and build the AI endorsements to match exactly what's required.

Trade type, annual revenue, payroll and crew size, vehicles, tools value, project types, current coverage, and loss history. The more detail, the more accurate the quote.

Yes — and you should if you provide design-build, specifications, project management, or consulting services. GL doesn't cover errors in professional services; E&O/professional liability is a separate policy that does.

Request a copy of your GL policy form and look for endorsements titled 'exclusion — work performed by subcontractors' or 'independent contractor exclusion.' If you're not sure, send us the policy and we'll review it.

Your GL policy has two aggregates: the general aggregate covers premises/operations claims; the products-completed operations aggregate covers completed-operations claims. These are separate pools — check both limits, not just the general aggregate.

Yes. Most of our carrier programs offer monthly or quarterly installment payment options. We can structure your program payments to match your project billing cycle when possible.

New ventures are insurable — often at the same rates as established operations with clean loss histories. Some carriers require more information for startups; we know which markets are new-venture friendly.

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