What does "insured" mean when you hire an office cleaning company?
Usually it means general liability insurance: cover if the cleaning company damages property or injures someone while working. Ask for the certificate and read the limits. JCIL's general liability policy has a $1 million per-occurrence limit and a $2 million aggregate, and the certificate is available on request.
Why the word "insured" is not enough
Almost every cleaning company says it is insured. The word tells you very little until you know which policy, what limits and which activities it covers. A crew working in your office at night, with your keys and your alarm code, is exactly the situation where those details matter.
Which policies should you ask about?
| Policy | What it is for | What to ask |
|---|---|---|
| General liability (GL) | Damage to your property or injury to a third party caused by the cleaning company's work | Per-occurrence and aggregate limits; does the policy list cleaning as a covered activity? |
| Workers' compensation | Injury to the cleaning company's own workers | Is there a policy, and who is covered under it? |
| Commercial auto | Vehicles used for the business | Is there one, if vehicles come onto your property? |
| Professional liability (E&O) | Claims that the work itself was done wrongly | Is it carried at all? Many cleaning companies don't. |
Your landlord, your lease or your own insurer may require some of these. Read the lease first, then compare it with the certificate, not with the sales pitch.
What does a certificate of insurance show?
A certificate of insurance (in the US usually the ACORD 25 form) is a one-page summary issued by the insurance broker. It shows the insurer, the policy period, the type of each policy and its limits. It does not change the policy; it only describes it. Three boxes are worth a closer look:
- The policy period. A certificate from last year proves nothing about tonight.
- Additional insured. If your lease requires you or your landlord to be named on the cleaning company's policy, the certificate has to say so, and the policy has to allow it.
- Waiver of subrogation. This stops the insurer from going after you to recover what it paid on a claim.
What does JCIL's policy cover?
JCIL is insured. A certificate of insurance is available on request.
Our policy is a contractor's package with commercial general liability, and cleaning services are a declared class on it. In plain numbers:
- General liability: $1 million per occurrence and $2 million aggregate.
- Products and completed operations: $2 million.
- Damage to premises rented to us: $500,000.
- Medical expense for a third party: $5,000.
- Equipment coverage through inland marine.
Just as important is what it is not. It is not a workers' compensation policy and not a commercial auto policy, and it does not include professional (E&O) coverage. Like most general liability policies, it also excludes some risks entirely, among them mold, communicable disease and cyber incidents. Asbestos and lead removal are excluded too, which is one reason that work is never in our scope.
Additional insured and waiver of subrogation
Our policy carries a blanket waiver of subrogation. Additional insured status is a different matter: on our policy it is not automatic for cleaning work. If your lease or your building requires you or your landlord to be named, tell us at the walkthrough so we can check it with our insurance broker before you sign anything that depends on it.
Insurance is the last line, not the first
A policy pays after something goes wrong. The controls that keep things from going wrong are in the service agreement: access only to the agreed areas at the agreed time, keys and codes safeguarded and returned when the service ends, before-and-after photos of the work, and a written process for reporting damage. Damage you believe we caused should be reported in writing, with photos, within 24 hours of the visit, so it can be checked against our own service photos.
Everyone who works in your office has passed a background check before working on a JCIL site.
How to check any cleaning company in five minutes
- Ask for a current certificate of insurance, issued by the broker.
- Check the policy period and the general liability limits against your lease.
- Ask directly which of the four policies above the company carries.
- If you need additional insured status, ask before signing, not after.
- Read the service agreement for how damage is reported and resolved.
FAQ
Does general liability cover a mistake in the cleaning work itself?
Not always. Claims that the work itself was done wrongly are what professional (E&O) coverage is for, and our policy does not include it.
Can I get a copy of your certificate of insurance?
Yes. It is available on request, issued by our insurance broker.
Will you add my company as additional insured?
It is not automatic on our policy for cleaning work. Tell us at the walkthrough and we check it with our broker before you sign.
What if something is damaged during a visit?
Report it in writing with photos within 24 hours of the visit. We review it against our service photos and handle it under the service agreement.
Need our certificate before a walkthrough? Ask when you book and we'll bring the details.
We clean offices from Boston north to Gloucester, Massachusetts only: Boston and Cambridge, North of Boston, North Shore.