Three Types of Coverage and What Each One Does
General liability insurance
General liability covers property damage and bodily injury caused by the cleaning contractor or their employees while on your premises. If a crew member breaks a window, knocks over an expensive piece of equipment, or causes a slip-and-fall by leaving a wet floor unmarked, the resulting claim should flow through the contractor's general liability policy.
Without general liability coverage, the claim flows to whoever can be shown to have responsibility for the premises—which often includes the building owner or property manager, even when the damage was caused entirely by the cleaning contractor's employee.
What to verify: request a certificate of insurance (COI) before the first clean. The COI should show the policy is current, the coverage amount is appropriate for commercial operations (not a residential-level policy), and your organisation can be named as additionally insured if your lease or building management agreement requires it.
Workers' compensation
Workers' compensation is arguably more important than general liability for cleaning companies, because crew members work with wet floors, heavy equipment and chemicals, and injuries do happen. Arizona law requires workers' compensation for any employer with one or more employees. Some small cleaning contractors misclassify employees as independent contractors to avoid this requirement. That misclassification does not protect you if the injured worker sues the building owner for premises liability.
If a cleaning crew member is injured in your building and the contractor carries workers' compensation, the claim goes through that policy. If the contractor carries no workers' comp and the worker is legally an employee (regardless of how the contractor labels them), you are exposed.
What to verify: the COI should include workers' compensation coverage, not just general liability. If it does not appear on the certificate, ask specifically. If the contractor says their workers are independent contractors and do not need coverage, that is a red flag, not a reassurance.
Bonding
A surety bond covers theft by cleaning employees on client premises. It is a separate instrument from general liability and is specifically designed for the cleaning industry, where employees have after-hours access to client facilities. The bond provides a recovery mechanism if an employee steals from your building.
Bonding amounts vary. Ask for the bond amount and the bonding company. A bond certificate should be available alongside the COI.
What to Ask Before Signing
| Question | What a satisfactory answer looks like |
|---|---|
| Are you insured? | "Yes, here is our current certificate of insurance." A verbal yes without documentation is not sufficient. |
| Do you carry workers' comp? | Workers' comp appears as a separate line on the COI. Confirm it is current and covers the employees who will be in your building. |
| Are your workers employees or contractors? | Either is acceptable if proper coverage is in place. "Contractors" used to avoid workers' comp is a red flag. |
| Are you bonded? | "Yes, here is our bond certificate." Bond amount and bonding company should be visible. |
| Can you name us as additionally insured? | Many policies allow this at no additional cost. Some leases and property management agreements require it. |
Laveen Commercial Cleaning Services carries general liability, workers' compensation and bonding. A certificate of insurance is included with every written quote. We can add additionally insured status when required by your property management agreement.