A lender asked for a COI on a building. Which form?

Usually ACORD 27 or ACORD 28, not ACORD 25. The ACORD 25 is a liability certificate and has no fields for property limits or a mortgagee. Ask the lender which evidence form it accepts.

Is ACORD 855 used outside New York?

The form is titled New York Construction Certificate of Liability Insurance Addendum and is marked to be attached to an ACORD 25. Whether a given project requires it depends on the contract and the owner.

Does an ACORD 28 give the lender rights under the policy?

No. It says it confers no rights upon the additional interest named on it. The lender’s rights come from the mortgage holder or loss payable provisions of the policy.

ACORD 25, 27, 28 or 855: which form answers which request?

Q: ACORD 25, 27, 28 or 855: which form answers which request?

ACORD 25 is the certificate for liability coverage. ACORD 27 and ACORD 28 are evidence of property insurance issued to a party with an interest in the property, such as a mortgagee or loss payee, and ACORD 28 is the more detailed commercial form. ACORD 855 NY is an addendum attached to an ACORD 25 that answers thirteen coverage questions on New York construction work.

Which form goes with which request?

Form	Title on the form	Issued to	Use it when
ACORD 25	Certificate of Liability Insurance	A certificate holder	A customer, landlord or general contractor wants proof of general liability, auto, umbrella or workers compensation
ACORD 24	Certificate of Property Insurance	A certificate holder	Someone wants proof that property coverage exists and is not asking to be shown as a mortgagee or loss payee
ACORD 27	Evidence of Property Insurance	An “additional interest”, with boxes for mortgagee, loss payee, lender’s loss payable and additional insured, and a loan number	A lender or lienholder wants evidence of property coverage and accepts the short form
ACORD 28	Evidence of Commercial Property Insurance	An additional interest, with boxes for mortgagee, loss payee, lender’s loss payable and contract of sale	A commercial lender wants the detail: business income, coinsurance, ordinance or law, flood, wind and more
ACORD 855 NY	New York Construction Certificate of Liability Insurance Addendum	The holder of the ACORD 25 it is attached to	A New York construction contract or owner asks for it

What do ACORD 27 and ACORD 28 show that an ACORD 25 does not?

An ACORD 25 has no place for building limits, causes of loss or a mortgagee. A lender asking for “a COI” on financed property usually needs one of the property forms.

ACORD 27 has a loan number, a property description, a coverage table with basic, broad and special perils, amounts of insurance and deductibles. ACORD 28 adds a yes or no checklist for a commercial risk: business income and rental value, blanket coverage, terrorism, fungus, replacement cost, agreed value, coinsurance, equipment breakdown, ordinance or law, earth movement, flood, wind and hail, named storm, and permission to waive subrogation in favor of the mortgage holder before a loss.

Writing in Rough Notes in 2007, Donald Malecki described ACORD 28 as designed to give those with a financial interest in the property of others, such as mortgagees, loss payees and other lienholders, a comprehensive view of the coverage. Which form a lender accepts is the lender’s decision. Ask before issuing.

What does ACORD 855 NY ask?

The 2014/05 edition is two pages, marked “Attach to ACORD 25”, and has items lettered A to M. Each is a tick-box statement about the general liability policy, not free text.

Whether the insurer is admitted, and whether the policy is on an ISO form.
Operations excluded or restricted by location, type of construction, building height, classification or designated work.
Which additional insured endorsement applies: CG 20 10, CG 20 26, CG 20 32, CG 20 33, CG 20 37, CG 20 38 or another.
Whether the additional insured has primary and noncontributory coverage, and whether it will receive advance notice if the insurer cancels.
Whether contractual liability, the employers liability exception, cover for injury to employees of the insured or subcontractors, earth movement and explosion, collapse and underground damage, cross suits, or damage to work performed by subcontractors has been removed or restricted.
Whether the excess or umbrella policy is primary and noncontributory for additional insureds.

What do all of these forms have in common?

Each one says it is issued as a matter of information only and does not amend, extend or alter the coverage afforded by the policies. The ACORD 855 NY says it “summarizes some of the policy provisions” and that the actual policy should be consulted. None of them is a way to grant coverage.

The 2016/03 editions of ACORD 24, 25, 27 and 28 also carry the same cancellation line: notice will be delivered in accordance with the policy provisions. Showing a lender on an ACORD 27 or 28 does not make it a mortgagee. The policy has to name it.

State rules may treat the forms differently. The Texas Department of Insurance says its certificate statute, Insurance Code Chapter 1811, does not apply to a statement or evidence of property insurance required by a lender in a lending transaction. Answering an ACORD 855 NY means reading the policy’s endorsements item by item, so it belongs with a licensed person.

Sources

General information, not legal advice or an interpretation of your policy. Policy forms and endorsements control. Form numbers are © Insurance Services Office, Inc. and are cited for reference.