Building compliance & insurance · updated August 2026
What Insurance Does a Cleaning Company Need to Work in Your Building?
The market floor is $1,000,000 per occurrence and $2,000,000 aggregate general liability, plus statutory workers' compensation and $1,000,000 employer's liability. Larger New York towers routinely require considerably more — janitorial vendors at some Class A properties are required to carry $5,000,000 general liability, whether as a primary policy or a primary plus umbrella tower.
Limits Scale With the Work, Not the Vendor
Building insurance schedules set requirements by trade, which is why a janitorial vendor and a delivery courier face different numbers in the same lobby. A representative Manhattan Class A schedule looks like this:
| Vendor type | General liability required |
|---|---|
| Deliveries | $1,000,000 |
| Flooring, movers, painting, plumbing | $2,000,000 |
| Janitorial, electrical, HVAC, fire sprinkler, rubbish removal | $5,000,000 |
| General construction | $10,000,000 |
Plus, in most cases: statutory workers' compensation, $1,000,000 employer's liability, and $1,000,000 automobile liability including hired and non-owned vehicles.
The Endorsements Matter More Than the Number
A certificate showing the right limit can still fail review. Check these:
- Additional insured endorsements actually attached — forms CG 20 10 (ongoing operations) and CG 20 37 (completed operations), not merely referenced in the description box on the ACORD face.
- Additional insured wording matching the handbook's entity list verbatim — owner, holding entities, managing agent, and any present or future mortgagee. Managing agents reject certificates over a missing entity constantly.
- Waiver of subrogation in favour of the owner and agent.
- Statutory New York workers' compensation on form C-105.2 and New York disability on DB-120.1 — separate documents from the ACORD.
- Carrier AM Best rating meeting the building's minimum, commonly A− VII or better.
- Notice of cancellation period, usually 30 days.
- No Action Over exclusion if any elevated work is contemplated — under New York's Labor Law §240 that exclusion removes exactly the coverage you would need.
Many buyers assume a $5,000,000 requirement means a $5,000,000 primary policy. In practice most managing agents accept a $1,000,000 primary with a $4,000,000 umbrella sitting above it. Knowing that widens your vendor pool considerably without lowering your protection.
The Practical Consequence
A vendor carrying $1,000,000 with no umbrella cannot be badged into a building that requires $5 million — regardless of how good they are or how much you want to hire them. Ask for the certificate before you get attached to a bid, and send it to your managing agent for pre-review. It takes a day and it saves a fortnight.
Last reviewed August 2026. Figures for prevailing wage and regulatory schedules change on 1 January and 1 July — we re-verify this page each cycle.
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