Umbrella / Excess Liability for Design-Build Contractors
Commercial umbrella and excess liability for design-build contractors — extending your GL, commercial auto, and employers liability limits for catastrophic claims, and optionally following form over professional liability (E&O) to provide catastrophic professional negligence protection above the E&O layer.
What it covers
- Excess limits above commercial general liability per-occurrence and aggregate
- Excess limits above commercial auto liability
- Excess limits above employers liability (Part Two of workers' comp)
- Follow-form professional liability excess above E&O when structured
- Defense costs above underlying policy limits
- Catastrophic bodily injury and property damage claims
- Drop-down coverage when underlying policy limits are exhausted
- Coverage for claims that exceed multiple underlying policy limits
Who it's for
- Design-build contractors with large project values and significant liability exposure
- Construction managers required to carry $5M–$25M total limits by project contracts
- Firms with public owner requirements for umbrella/excess above underlying policies
- Contractors whose standard CGL and auto limits are insufficient for catastrophic scenarios
- Design-build firms seeking professional liability excess above their E&O policy
- Any contractor required to name additional insureds at high limits
Why CCA
- Umbrella structured to follow form over E&O — not just CGL and auto — for professional claim protection
- High-limit umbrella programs for large commercial, industrial, and infrastructure projects
- Additional insured endorsements carried through from underlying to umbrella policy
- Coordinated with all underlying lines so no coverage gaps at the umbrella attachment point
- Umbrella market access for firms with difficult underlying risk profiles
Common questions about umbrella / excess liability
A true umbrella policy provides broader coverage than the underlying policies and can drop down to cover gaps. An excess policy simply provides additional limits above the underlying policy with the same terms. Most design-build contractors want a true umbrella that follows form over all underlying lines — CGL, auto, employers liability, and ideally E&O.
Standard umbrella policies exclude professional liability — they follow form over CGL and auto but not E&O. A specifically structured umbrella or excess policy can follow form over E&O and provide catastrophic professional negligence protection. We structure umbrella programs that include this follow-form professional liability layer when required.
Project contracts and owner requirements drive umbrella limits. Small commercial design-build may require $5M total (primary + umbrella). Large institutional, healthcare, or infrastructure projects routinely require $10M–$25M total limits. Public projects can require even more. We match umbrella limits to your actual contractual requirements.
Yes. Most umbrella policies can carry additional insured endorsements that parallel the underlying CGL. We structure the umbrella so owners, lenders, and other required additional insureds receive the same protection at the umbrella layer as they do on the underlying CGL.
A deductible is the amount you pay out-of-pocket before your insurance coverage responds. A $10,000 E&O deductible means you absorb the first $10,000 of a covered claim; the policy pays the remainder up to the limit. Higher deductibles reduce premiums but increase your out-of-pocket exposure on claims.
A per-claim limit is the maximum the policy pays for any single claim. An aggregate limit is the maximum the policy pays across all claims during the policy period. A $1M/$2M E&O policy pays up to $1M per claim and up to $2M total across all claims in the policy year.
A.M. Best ratings reflect a carrier's financial strength and ability to pay claims. We place coverage with A-rated (Excellent) carriers so the coverage is there when a design defect suit, a professional negligence claim, or a pollution incident hits — not a carrier that becomes insolvent mid-claim.
Yes. Contractors Choice Agency is licensed in all 50 states and has specialty E&O markets for design-build contractors, construction managers, and architect-contractors anywhere in the country.
Typically 15 minutes on a call. Larger or more complex programs may take a day or two to place with the right specialty markets, but we move fast and set expectations up front.
Often yes. We have admitted and E&S markets for design-build firms with prior professional liability claims, difficult project types, or hard-to-place risk profiles. Bring us your situation and we'll find a market.
Usually yes. A coordinated program — E&O, CGL, workers' comp, commercial auto, umbrella — closes gaps between policies, especially the critical coordination between professional and general liability. It is typically cheaper and far easier to manage at claim time than separate policies from separate carriers.
An occurrence policy covers events that happen during the policy period, regardless of when the claim is made. A claims-made policy covers claims made during the policy period. Construction professional liability (E&O) is almost always claims-made. CGL is typically occurrence. Understanding the difference is critical for design-build contractors who need both.
Surplus lines carriers write risks that standard (admitted) carriers decline — unusual project types, firms with prior claims, or non-standard contract structures. E&S markets are critical for design-build contractors with complex risk profiles. We have E&S market access for the firms standard brokers can't place.
We issue certificates of insurance (ACORD 25 for liability) within hours of binding coverage. For design-build contracts that require project-specific endorsements, additional insured status, or primary/non-contributory language, we structure those requirements into the policy at binding.
Firm type and structure, annual revenue, project types and sizes, contract method (design-build, CM, GC+design sub), states where you operate, current coverage, coverage lines needed, and loss history. The more detail, the more accurate the quote — and the faster we can go to market.
With claims-made E&O, switching carriers requires a prior acts date (retroactive date) on the new policy to cover work done before the switch — or a tail endorsement on the old policy. We manage this transition so there are no gaps in your professional liability coverage.
Yes. If you operate across multiple jobsites, have satellite offices, or manage projects in different states, we build one coordinated program covering professional and general liability, builders risk, and workers' comp with no gaps between locations.
Yes. Public-sector design-build and CM projects often require higher limits, specific endorsements, and particular certificate language. We structure programs that satisfy public owner requirements — including government clients, school districts, and infrastructure owners — and maintain the specialty E&O markets that will write public-sector construction professionals.
Pair it with related coverage
Ready to protect your design-build operation?
Get a 15-minute quote from specialists who understand construction professional liability — E&O, design defect claims, specification errors, coordination failures, and completed operations professional exposure.