A certificate of insurance is a one-page summary of a policy, issued to someone who needs proof that the policy exists. For a Georgia NEMT provider, that someone is the broker, whose duties, in the Georgia Department of Community Health’s words, include recruiting and contracting with transportation providers and assuring quality. The certificate is the document those two duties run on.

What is on it

A certificate names the insured, the insurance companies, the policy numbers and effective dates, and the limits for each coverage: commercial auto liability, general liability and, where the operation carries them, hired and non-owned auto and umbrella. It names the certificate holder, which for a NEMT provider is the broker, and it states whether the holder is an additional insured and whether it will be notified if the policy cancels.

What it cannot do

A certificate cannot add coverage. It reports what the policy carries on the day it is issued. If the broker’s contract asks for the broker to be an additional insured, the policy has to be endorsed to say so before the certificate can say so. If the contract asks for notice of cancellation, the same applies. Issuing a certificate that promises an endorsement the policy does not carry is the one thing an agency should never do, because the certificate is the document the broker will rely on.

Where files fall short

  • The vehicle schedule. A van that runs trips and is not listed on the commercial auto policy is the most common gap. Vehicles go on the policy before their first trip, and the certificate is reissued to show them.
  • The additional insured wording. Contracts specify the wording. An endorsement in a different form may not satisfy it.
  • The cancellation notice. Some contracts require notice to the broker if the policy cancels. That is an endorsement, not a checkbox on the certificate.

What to send

Send the broker’s insurance requirements in writing, your current declarations pages, your vehicle list with VINs and your driver list. The policy is endorsed to the requirements, and the certificate is issued to match. Metro Risk Management Group writes NEMT programs from Atlanta for operators across metro Atlanta and Georgia.