Glossary
Certificate of insurance (COI)
A certificate of insurance (COI) is a one-page summary of a policy's coverage, issued as proof of insurance to a third party called the certificate holder. The most common version is the ACORD 25 for liability. A certificate is informational only: it does not amend the policy and grants the holder no coverage.
Why certificates eat agency time
COI requests are the highest-volume service task in many commercial agencies. Every job site, landlord, event, and contract can trigger one, and the requester usually wants it same day. A general contractor may require a certificate from every subcontractor before anyone sets foot on site, so one project can mean a stack of requests.
The requests arrive as plain email, often with the contract's insurance requirements buried in an attachment. Someone has to read those requirements, check them against the actual policy, and issue the cert.
What a certificate does and does not do
It shows the carrier, policy numbers, limits, and effective dates. That is it. The disclaimer language on the ACORD 25 says outright that the certificate confers no rights on the holder and does not amend, extend, or alter the coverage.
If a contract requires additional insured status or a waiver of subrogation, that has to happen by endorsement on the policy itself. The certificate can only reflect what the policy already provides. Issuing a cert that shows status the policy does not actually grant is a classic E&O exposure.
In Relay
Certificate requests land in the inbox all day. Relay reads incoming mail, tags it, and routes each request to the right person so nothing sits. See how →
Common questions
Does being a certificate holder give me coverage?
No. A certificate holder receives proof that the named insured has coverage, nothing more. Coverage for a third party requires an additional insured endorsement on the policy itself.
Who issues certificates of insurance?
Usually the agent of record, working from the policy in the agency management system. Some carriers also issue them directly or through self-service portals.
Part of the Relay insurance operations glossary. Updated 2026-07-11. See how we source content.
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