TL;DR
A certificate of insurance is a one-page summary issued by an insurance agency, not by the cleaning company itself. It is the normal way to confirm coverage before a crew works in your home. Ask for it in writing before the first visit, read the policy dates and coverage lines, and confirm anything unclear with the agency listed on the form.
What Is a Certificate of Insurance?
A certificate of insurance, usually shortened to COI, is a summary document that names the insurance carrier, the policy number, the types of coverage in force, the dollar limits, and the effective and expiration dates. It is evidence that a policy existed on the day it was issued. It is not the policy itself.
That distinction matters more than most homeowners expect. A certificate summarizes; it does not grant. If the underlying policy is cancelled the week after the form prints, the paper in your hand still looks perfectly valid. That is why the dates and the issuing agency are the two things worth reading first.
Requesting a COI is a routine, unremarkable ask in the service trades. Commercial clients and property managers request one on nearly every vendor. A cleaning company that works with offices or apartment buildings almost certainly has a process for producing one, because those clients demand it before a crew is allowed through the door.
Who Actually Issues a COI?
The insurance agency or broker issues the certificate, not the cleaning company. You ask the company, the company asks its agent, and the agent generates the form and emails it out. A certificate that a business typed up itself is not a certificate, and a screenshot of a policy declaration page is not one either.
This is the single most useful thing to understand before you ask. When a company says it will "send over its insurance," what you want back is an agency-issued form with the agency's name, address, and contact details printed on it. That contact block is what lets you verify the document later without going back through the company.
Source: standard commercial insurance certificate practice
How to Ask for a COI Without Making It Awkward
Ask early and ask plainly, in writing. A short message works: "Before we book, could you have your agent send a current certificate of insurance to this email address?" Framing it as a step in your booking process rather than a suspicion keeps the conversation ordinary, which is exactly what it should be.
Do it before the first visit rather than after a problem. Requesting proof of coverage while you are upset about a broken lamp turns an administrative step into a confrontation. Doing it during the quote stage costs nothing and tells you a great deal about how the company runs. A firm that answers within a day or two with a real agency form is a firm with its paperwork in order.
If you are comparing several companies, ask all of them the same way. Reading the answers side by side is more informative than reading any single one. Our broader guide to hiring a cleaning service covers where this step fits among the rest of the comparison questions, and the companion piece on liability questions to ask covers what to ask once the form arrives.
What to Read on the Certificate
Read the certificate in this order: dates, named insured, coverage lines, limits, then the agency block. The dates tell you whether coverage is current. The named insured tells you whether the policy belongs to the company you are actually hiring or to a related entity with a different name.
| What to check | Why it matters |
|---|---|
| Effective and expiration dates | A certificate can be genuine and still be expired |
| Named insured | Should match the legal business name on your agreement |
| Coverage lines listed | General liability and workers compensation are the two most often discussed |
| Limits shown | Per-occurrence and aggregate limits are different numbers |
| Issuing agency contact block | This is who you call to verify |
| Certificate holder box | Names the party the form was prepared for |
A name mismatch is worth a question rather than an accusation. Small companies frequently operate under a trade name while the policy sits under a formal LLC name. Ask which entity you are contracting with and confirm the two connect.
How to Verify That a Certificate Is Current
Call or email the agency printed on the certificate and ask whether the policy is active as of today. Agencies field this question constantly and it takes them a minute. You are not asking for policy details or private information, only whether coverage is in force.
If the agency will not confirm anything, that is not automatically a red flag, since some agencies route all verification back to the insured. In that case, ask the cleaning company to have the agent send the confirmation directly to you. What you want is a statement from the insurance side, not from the sales side.
For recurring service, ask to be notified at renewal or simply set a calendar reminder for the expiration date on the form. Coverage lapses are usually accidents, not schemes, and a polite reminder a month out resolves most of them quietly.
Should You Ask to Be Named as a Certificate Holder?
Being listed as the certificate holder means the form was prepared for you and, in many cases, that the agency will notify you if the policy is cancelled. It is a common request from commercial clients and a reasonable one from a homeowner on a long-running recurring plan.
It does not make you an additional insured, which is a separate and more involved endorsement that changes the policy itself. Most residential clients do not need that. If your situation is unusual, that question belongs to your own insurance agent rather than to the cleaning company.
Red Flags Worth a Second Question
A refusal to provide anything at all is the clearest signal. So is a form with no agency contact block, a policy that expired months ago, or a named insured that has no visible connection to the business you are hiring. None of these prove bad faith, and all of them deserve a direct question before you book.
Vagueness is its own answer. "We are fully covered, do not worry about it" is a sentence, not a document. A company used to working for property managers will not blink at the request, because it has answered it a hundred times.
Source: consumer guidance published by state insurance regulators
FAQ
Is a certificate of insurance the same as the insurance policy?
No. A certificate is a one-page summary of a policy that was in force on the date it was issued. The policy is the full contract, running dozens of pages, and it governs what is actually covered. A certificate is evidence, not coverage, which is why the dates on it matter so much.
Can a cleaning company make its own certificate of insurance?
It should not. Certificates are generated by the insurance agency or broker that placed the policy, and they carry the agency's name and contact details so a client can verify them. A document typed up by the business itself, or a photo of a declarations page, is not the same thing and should prompt a follow-up request.
Is it rude to ask a house cleaner for proof of insurance?
Not at all. It is a standard step in the service trades and commercial clients ask on nearly every job. Framing it as part of your normal booking process keeps it routine. Companies that regularly serve offices or apartment buildings already have a process for producing the form on request.
What if the cleaning company is a solo independent cleaner?
Independent cleaners carry coverage less consistently than established companies, and some carry none. That is information, not a disqualification, but you should know it before booking rather than after. If a solo cleaner cannot produce a certificate, ask your own insurer how that changes your exposure.
How long is a certificate of insurance good for?
Until the policy expiration date printed on it, and no longer. Policies are commonly written for a one-year term, so a certificate issued eleven months ago is nearly stale. For recurring service, note the expiration date and ask for a refreshed form at renewal.
Should I ask my own insurance company about this too?
Yes, and it is worth doing before the first visit. Only your carrier can tell you how your homeowners or renters policy treats a paid worker in your home. Our guide to why workers comp comes up explains the question, but the answer for your policy comes from your agent.
Asking for a certificate of insurance is one of the cheapest pieces of due diligence available to you, and it takes about two minutes. If you are comparing house cleaning services and want a straight answer on scheduling, crew screening, and what drives the number for your home, get a quote and we will walk you through it. Every home is different, so the real price depends on size, condition, and what you want covered.