Property Management
Vendor COI Checklists for Multi-Tenant Retail Centers
A shopping center runs on vendors: snow plows, sweepers, guards, roofers and HVAC techs. Each brings a different exposure to your parking lot and common areas. Here is a COI checklist organized by vendor type.
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Why retail common areas carry more exposure
A multi-tenant retail center invites the public onto property the landlord controls. Parking lots, sidewalks, loading areas and roofs are common areas, maintained by vendors the landlord hires and paid for through common area maintenance charges. When someone slips in the parking lot at 7 a.m., the claim names the owner, the manager and whichever vendor touched that surface last.
Vendor contracts in retail are also short and informal compared with construction subcontracts. Many centers still run snow removal or sweeping on a one-page service agreement with an insurance paragraph copied from an old template, and the certificate that arrives is checked against that paragraph, if at all.
That makes each vendor's insurance part of the landlord's defense. The checklist below starts with a baseline for every vendor and then adds the checks that matter most for each vendor type.
The baseline for every vendor
Set the limits with your broker and counsel. The structure below is the part that rarely changes from one center to the next:
- Commercial general liability, commonly $1,000,000 each occurrence and $2,000,000 general aggregate, naming the property-owning entity and the manager as additional insureds through CG 20 26 or blanket wording triggered by your written service agreement.
- Primary and non-contributory wording and a waiver of subrogation (CG 20 01, CG 24 04).
- Business auto liability covering any auto (symbol 1), or at minimum hired and non-owned autos (symbols 8 and 9) for vendors who do not drive on site, with additional insured status where the contract requires it (CA 20 48).
- Workers compensation at statutory limits, employers liability and a waiver of subrogation (WC 00 03 13).
- Umbrella coverage for vendors working at height, operating vehicles in the lot or providing security.
- Carriers rated A- VII or better, and a certificate holder that matches the owning entity on title.
Snow and ice removal contractors
Snow vendors sit behind more slip and fall claims than almost any other retail vendor, and their policies are where exclusions hide. Many landscaping policies carry carrier-specific snow and ice removal exclusions or sublimits, because the contractor's primary operation is lawn care. Require the CGL to cover snow and ice operations explicitly, and read the forms schedule before the season starts.
Ask for plow and salt logs as part of the service agreement. When a fall happens hours after the truck leaves, the timestamped service record is often the most important document in the defense, and it supports the tender to the vendor's carrier.
Because a fall on a refrozen patch the next morning can be argued to arise from completed work rather than ongoing operations, ask for additional insured status that extends to completed operations, not only to the hours the crew is on site.
Security guard companies
Security vendors are hired to deal with conflict, which is why many of their policies exclude or sublimit assault and battery. A guard policy with an assault and battery exclusion can leave the landlord defending a negligent security claim alone. Require that assault and battery be covered at the full CGL limit or at a stated limit you have agreed to accept, and confirm whether the contract permits armed guards and whether the policy covers them.
Read the exclusion's wording, not just its title. Some assault and battery exclusions remove coverage for an assault by anyone, including patrons and tenants' customers, which is precisely the event a negligent security suit is about.
Patrol vehicles need auto liability, and guard companies with high staff turnover deserve a close look at workers compensation status and the waiver of subrogation.
Roofers, HVAC and other trades on the roof
A rooftop unit replacement is construction, even when it is billed as maintenance. Treat roofing, HVAC, electrical and plumbing vendors like subcontractors: additional insured status for ongoing and completed operations (CG 20 10 with CG 20 37, or blanket equivalents) and attention to hot work. Roofing carried the highest defect rate of any trade in Pikorua Security's 2026 benchmark, at 84%.
Watch for CG 21 44, Limitation of Coverage to Designated Premises, Project or Operation. A vendor policy limited to listed premises or operations can leave your center off the list entirely. When a tenant hires its own contractor for rooftop work, require the landlord and manager as additional insureds on that contractor's policy too.
Janitorial, sweeping and lot maintenance
Janitorial vendors work after hours inside tenant spaces, so many landlords require third-party crime coverage that protects clients' property from employee theft, in addition to the CGL baseline. Parking lot sweepers and pressure washers operate trucks and equipment in the lot, which puts business auto at the center of their exposure. For these vendors, symbol 1 or owned auto coverage matters more than hired and non-owned.
Day porters and maintenance vendors who use ladders, lifts or chemicals in common areas sit closer to the trade rules than the janitorial ones. If a vendor's scope includes light fixture replacement, gutter cleaning or roof drain work, apply the height and completed operations checks to that vendor as well.
Keeping the checklist alive
A checklist printed once and filed is not a program. Store the baseline and the vendor-type additions as templates, apply them when each vendor is set up, and check seasonal vendors before their season begins.
In Pikorua Security, each vendor type maps to a rule template, vendors in AppFolio or Yardi Voyager carry their compliance status, and the 60, 30, 15 and 0 day renewal reminders go to both the vendor and its broker. Payment holds catch an expired policy at the next invoice instead of at the next claim.
Review the baseline once a year with your broker. Limits that made sense when a center was acquired may no longer match lender requirements or the exposures at the property, and the template is the one place to change them for every vendor at once.
Related reading
- Endorsement guideCG 20 26: Additional Insured, Designated Person
- Endorsement guideCG 21 44: Limitation to Designated Premises or Project
- Endorsement guideCA 20 48: Designated Insured for Covered Autos
- ResourceCOI review checklists for property managers
- Trade guideLandscaping and grounds vendor requirements
- SolutionPikorua Security for property managers and REITs
About the author
Arjun Bhatia
VP Product, Pikorua Security
Arjun leads product at Pikorua Security, including the contract rule builder, AM Best checks and the renewal cadence. He previously built insurance platforms at Tata Consultancy Services.
The Risk Transfer Brief explains insurance and contract concepts in general terms. Pikorua Security is software, not a law firm, insurer or broker. For contract drafting, or a coverage position on a specific claim, work with your coverage counsel.