Most freight brokers and shippers have a COI on file for every carrier in their network. Most of them also believe that means their carriers are insured. These two facts are not the same thing.
A COI confirms that a policy existed when the certificate was printed. It does not confirm the policy is still active, that the limits match your contract, or that the coverage types your agreement requires are actually in place. Verifying carrier insurance compliance means going further than the certificate - and most operations don't.
Here is a step-by-step process that closes the gap.
Step 1: Pull the Governing Contract First
Before you look at a single COI, open the broker-carrier agreement, shipper contract, or master service agreement that governs the relationship. Find the insurance exhibit or insurance requirements section.
Document the following from the contract:
- Every required coverage type (auto liability, cargo, GL, WC, umbrella, etc.)
- The minimum limit for each coverage type (per occurrence AND aggregate where applicable)
- Required endorsements (additional insured, waiver of subrogation, HNOA, MCS-90)
- Named insured and certificate holder requirements
- Any commodity-specific or route-specific requirements
This list is your verification checklist. Everything that follows gets measured against it.
Step 2: Request the COI Directly - Not Through the Carrier
Do not accept a COI emailed directly from the carrier. COI fraud is a documented problem in trucking. Carriers have been known to alter limits, change expiration dates, or fabricate certificates entirely.
Request the COI directly from the carrier's insurance agent or broker - the contact listed on the insurer's records. Most agents will email a fresh certificate within 24-48 hours. If the carrier cannot produce a direct agent contact, that is a red flag.
For high-value carrier relationships, consider requesting a Certificate of Liability Insurance directly from the insurer, not just the agent.
Step 3: Verify the Named Insured
The named insured on the COI must match the legal entity you've contracted with. If your broker-carrier agreement is with "Apex Freight LLC" and the COI names "Apex Transportation Group Inc.," you may have a coverage gap. These are legally distinct entities.
Common mismatch scenarios:
- DBA (doing business as) names that differ from the legal entity
- Parent/subsidiary relationships where the parent is insured but the subsidiary is operating
- Sole proprietors operating under a business name
When in doubt, request documentation confirming the insured entity's relationship to the contracting party.
Step 4: Compare Every Limit Against the Contract
Go line by line through the COI and compare each coverage type and limit to your contract requirements:
| Coverage Type | Contract Requires | COI Shows | Compliant? |
|---|---|---|---|
| Commercial Auto Liability | $1,000,000 CSL | $750,000 | No - gap of $250K |
| Motor Truck Cargo | $100,000 | $100,000 | Yes |
| General Liability | $1M/$2M | $1M/$2M | Yes |
| Workers' Compensation | Statutory | Statutory | Yes |
| Umbrella | $1,000,000 | None listed | No - missing |
Every "No" requires follow-up before the carrier is approved for freight.
Step 5: Verify Required Endorsements
Endorsements are frequently the most overlooked element of COI verification. The ACORD 25 form has limited space and often doesn't capture endorsement details clearly.
For transportation, verify:
Additional Insured: Call the agent and confirm your entity is named on the policy's additional insured endorsement - not just mentioned in the description-of-operations field of the certificate.
Waiver of Subrogation: Confirm this is endorsed on the policy, not just referenced on the certificate.
MCS-90: Interstate carriers of regulated commodities must have this endorsement. Ask the agent to confirm it's attached.
HNOA (Hired and Non-Owned Auto): Required when the carrier uses leased vehicles or subcontracts to owner-operators. Confirm it covers the vehicles being used on your freight.
Cargo Endorsements: If you're shipping temperature-sensitive, high-value, or otherwise excluded commodities, confirm the cargo policy has the endorsement covering those goods.
Step 6: Confirm Policy Effective Dates
A certificate showing an expiration date of December 31 does not mean the policy is active today. Policies can be cancelled mid-term without the certificate holder receiving timely notice (notice of cancellation provisions vary by state and policy).
For active carrier relationships:
- Confirm the policy is in force by calling the insurer or agent at the time of the check
- Note the policy effective date - some policies have coverage gaps at renewal if there's a lapse between the old and new policy
- Set a calendar reminder to request a renewal COI 60 days before the current certificate expires
Step 7: Document Your Review
Every verification review should be documented with:
- Date of review
- Who performed the review
- What was checked and against which contract
- What was compliant and what was deficient
- What follow-up was required and when it was resolved
This documentation is your defense if a claim arises and coverage is disputed. Without it, you have no way to demonstrate due diligence.
Step 8: Re-Verify When Anything Changes
Carrier insurance verification is not a one-time event. Re-verify when:
- The carrier's policy renews
- You add a new commodity type or higher-value freight to the relationship
- The carrier relationship changes (new routes, new services)
- The governing contract is renewed or amended
- You receive any notice of material change from the carrier's insurer
Automating This Process
For carrier networks of 100 or more, manual verification at this level of detail becomes untenable. A compliance team spending 30 minutes per carrier per cycle, across 500 carriers twice a year, is logging 500 hours annually - roughly $36,400 in burdened cost.
Automation through a contract-aware compliance platform like Bramble compresses this to minutes. Bramble reads the governing contract, reads the COI, and produces a clause-level comparison - flagging every gap by coverage type, limit, and endorsement requirement without manual review.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I know if a carrier's insurance has been cancelled? FMCSA maintains the Licensing & Insurance (L&I) database (li-public.fmcsa.dot.gov) which shows active filings for interstate carriers. This is a useful starting point but does not capture all policy types. For complete verification, contact the insurer directly.
What if the carrier can't produce documentation of an endorsement? Treat the carrier as non-compliant for that requirement until documentation is provided. Do not tender freight to a carrier with a known compliance gap while waiting for documents.
Can I rely on automatic expiration notices from the insurer? Cancellation notice provisions vary - some policies require 30-day advance notice to certificate holders, others provide less. Don't rely on passive notification. Build proactive renewal requests into your workflow.
How often should I re-verify a long-term carrier relationship? At minimum annually, aligned with policy renewals. For high-volume or high-value carrier relationships, quarterly spot checks are a reasonable best practice.
Verifying carrier insurance compliance requires going beyond the certificate - comparing every line against the governing contract and confirming endorsements with the insurer directly.
See how Bramble automates this process for Transportation or learn how contract vs. COI comparison works.
See how Bramble performs clause-level verification in minutes. Book a demo at getbramble.com.