Anwar was severely injured while working on FCL's jobsite, so he sued FCL as the general contractor. FCL had a written contract with all its contractors to include it as an additional insured on their policies so Anwar's suit was forwarded to JAK, Anwar's employer. JAK's carrier refused to provide the automatic additional insured coverage because JAK was a subcontractor of Suburban not FCL. However, Suburban did have a contract with FCL. The district court agreed with JAK's carrier but FCL appealed.

Click here to see whether the appellate court agreed with the trial court or with the plaintiff?

Several endorsements are available to name others as additional insureds on a CGL policy. However, some businesses have so many clients requiring additional insured status that ISO developed automatic additional insured endorsements for ease of handling. These endorsements are very helpful in easing the administrative burden, but it is important to understand their limitations.

Click here to read the PF&M article describing the four automatic additional insured endorsements and their uses.

A building isn't a building until it is framed. Many times, that frame is in steel. The steel is generally manufactured off site and then delivered for the steel erection contractor to install. These contractors work within exacting constraints and often under tight time frames. As in this court case, the erection contractor may be a subcontractor to another subcontractor.

Click here to review the steel erection contractors' narrative.

This court case could be used to explain an important insurance coverage limitation to a steel contractor. If you are interested in pursuing this approach, consider also offering to provide a survey.

Click here for a business building letter for a starting point.