Sample letters

Certificate request letters for tenants and vendors

Two samples that name the exact documents a lease or a vendor contract asks for: the ACORD 25, the endorsement pages and, for a tenant, the ACORD 28. Copy one and fill in the brackets.

Two sample letters

Copy the one you need, fill in the brackets, set each amount to what the lease or contract says and delete any line it doesn't ask for.

To a tenant

Subject: Insurance documents: [Tenant] at [Property]

Hi [First name],

Section [number] of your lease at [Property], [Unit], asks for proof of insurance. Please send these by [Date]. Your insurance agent can send them to me directly.

A current ACORD 25 showing:

General liability: [$1M] each occurrence, [$2M] aggregate
Damage to rented premises: [$300K] each occurrence
Liquor liability: [$1M] each occurrence
Workers' comp: statutory limits
Employers' liability: [$500K] on all three limits
Certificate holder: [Owner] c/o [Your company], [Mailing address]

The endorsement pages:

Additional insured: CG 20 11 naming [Owner], [Your company] and [Lender]
Waiver of subrogation: CG 24 04 for [Owner] and [Your company]
Primary and non-contributory: CG 20 01 for [Owner] and [Your company]

A current ACORD 28 showing:

Tenant improvements: full replacement cost
Business personal property: full replacement cost
Causes of loss: special form
Business income: [12 months]
Loss payee: [Owner]

Using your carrier's own forms? Send those, and we'll check them. If any of this would change your policy, please talk it over with your agent first.

Thanks,
[Your name]
[Your company]

To a vendor

Subject: Insurance documents: [Vendor] at [Property]

Hi [First name],

Section [number] of our contract with you asks for proof of insurance for your work at [Property]. Please send these by [Date]. Your insurance agent can send them to me directly.

A current ACORD 25 showing:

General liability: [$1M] each occurrence, [$2M] aggregate
Auto liability: [$1M] combined single limit
Workers' comp: statutory limits
Employers' liability: [$500K] on all three limits
Certificate holder: [Owner] c/o [Your company], [Mailing address]

The endorsement pages:

Additional insured: CG 20 26 naming [Owner] and [Your company]
Waiver of subrogation: CG 24 04 for [Owner] and [Your company]
Waiver of subrogation on workers' comp: WC 00 03 13, or your state's own form, for [Owner] and [Your company]
Primary and non-contributory: CG 20 01 for [Owner] and [Your company]

Using your carrier's own forms? Send those, and we'll check them. If any of this would change your policy, please talk it over with your agent first.

Thanks,
[Your name]
[Your company]

What the letters ask for

Three kinds of documents, in the order the letters give them:

A current ACORD 25, the certificate: a summary of their liability and workers' comp policies, with the owner in the holder box. In its own words, it confers no rights on the holder and doesn't change their coverage.
The endorsement pages: the pages of their policy that make the owner, your company and the lender additional insureds, and that waive subrogation. The ACORD 25 says an additional insured needs the policy endorsed, and that a statement on the certificate doesn't stand in for the endorsement.
A current ACORD 28, for a tenant: the evidence of commercial property insurance, with the property, the causes of loss, the amount of insurance and business income, and a box for the owner as loss payee. Like the ACORD 25, it confers no rights by itself.

Texas and New York law say the same as the forms: a certificate of insurance doesn't amend, extend or alter the policy.

Tenants and vendors get different forms

What goes with each kind of party:

WhatA tenantA vendor

Additional insured pageTenant: CG 20 11, ISO's form for managers or lessors of premisesVendor: CG 20 26, for a designated person or organization, and CA 20 48 on their auto policy

On the certificateTenant: General liability, damage to rented premises, liquor liability, workers' comp and an umbrellaVendor: General liability, auto liability, workers' comp and an umbrella

Waivers of subrogationTenant: CG 24 04 on general liabilityVendor: CG 24 04, CA 04 44 on auto and WC 00 03 13 on workers' comp

Primary and non-contributoryTenant: CG 20 01Vendor: CG 20 01

Property insuranceTenant: An ACORD 28 for their improvements and business property, with the owner as loss payeeVendor: Not asked

In Kentucky and New Hampshire, a contract can't require a waiver of subrogation on workers' comp.

An example

Pennock Property Partners manages Tansy Commons for Tansy Commons Owner LLC. Section 12 of Tolstrup Café's lease for Suite 104 asks for liability, liquor liability and workers' comp, with the owner, Pennock and the lender, Halvard Bank & Trust, named on the liability policy. It also asks for property insurance on the café's improvements and business property.

Ana Toivonen filled in the tenant sample with those names, and her letter asks the café for:

An ACORD 25 with general liability at $1M each occurrence and $2M aggregate, $300K for damage to rented premises, $1M of liquor liability, and workers' comp with $500K of employers' liability, held by Tansy Commons Owner LLC in care of Pennock
The CG 20 11 page naming the owner, Pennock and Halvard Bank & Trust, and the CG 24 04 and CG 20 01 pages for the owner and Pennock
An ACORD 28 with the café's improvements and business property at full replacement cost on special form, 12 months of business income, and the owner as loss payee

Questions people ask

Why ask for the endorsement pages, not just the certificate?

Because the certificate confers no rights by itself. The ACORD 25 says an additional insured needs the policy to be endorsed, and that a statement on the certificate doesn't stand in for the endorsement.

What is an ACORD 28?

The evidence of commercial property insurance. It shows the property, the causes of loss covered, the amount of insurance and business income, with boxes for a mortgagee, a lender's loss payable and a loss payee. Like the ACORD 25, it confers no rights by itself.

Do commercial leases ask for this?

Most do. Seyfarth Shaw, a law firm, writes that most commercial leases require the tenant to provide certificates of insurance or other evidence of insurance. Your own lease decides what to ask for.

Who goes in the certificate holder box?

The owner, in care of your company at your mailing address, so the certificate names the owner and reaches you. An owner that manages its own property is named once, with no c/o.

When should the letter name the lender?

When the loan asks for the lender to be an additional insured. The tenant sample names it on the additional insured page, beside the owner and your company, so delete it when the loan doesn't ask.

Is this letter legal advice?

No. Your lease or contract decides what to ask for, and the samples name each document by its form.

Sources

Facts checked Nov 8, 2026. This page states facts, not insurance or legal advice. Found a mistake? Email hello@coverstamp.com, and see how we check facts.

ACORD: Forms notification, December 2025, as of Oct 2026 · the ACORD 25 moved to its 2025/12 edition
New York Department of Financial Services: ACORD 25 (2025/12), as of Oct 2026 · it confers no rights on the holder; an additional insured needs the policy endorsed
New York Office of General Services: ACORD 28 (2016/03), as of Aug 2025 · it confers no rights; the property, causes of loss, amounts, business income and the loss payee box
FC&S: ISO general liability additional insured endorsements, Jul 2025 · CG 20 11 for managers or lessors of premises; CG 20 26 for a designated person or organization
City of Sierra Madre: Acceptable additional insured endorsements · CG 20 26 adds a designated person or organization for the named insured's premises or operations
FC&S: Business auto forms, Sep 2015 · CA 04 44, the waiver of subrogation on auto
City of Sierra Madre: Acceptable waiver of subrogation endorsements · WC 00 03 13, the waiver on workers' comp
KEMI: Can a waiver of subrogation be added to a policy? · Kentucky prohibits waivers on workers' comp, per KRS 342.700(3)
New Hampshire RSA 281-A:13, as of Jun 2025 · an agreement that requires the waiver is prohibited
Texas Insurance Code § 1811.152, as of May 2025 · a certificate does not amend, extend or alter the policy
New York Insurance Law § 502 · a certificate shall not amend, extend or alter the coverage
Seyfarth Shaw: Basics of insurance certificates and evidence of insurance for lease transactions, Feb 2013 · most commercial leases require certificates or other evidence of insurance

Get in first

Manage properties? Coverstamp keeps track of your tenants' and vendors' certificates for you. It asks for each one, checks it against the lease or contract and follows up on what's missing. It opens in early 2027, and people on the list get in first.