Oil & Gas Contractor Insurance Checklist: Required Coverages and Limits

The tables below provide a structured reference for reviewing oilfield contractor COIs against typical MSA requirements. Use this as a starting framework - your specific MSA insurance exhibit governs, and requirements vary by operator, asset type, contractor scope, and jurisdiction.

For each contractor, work through each section in order. A single gap in a required coverage or endorsement is grounds to withhold site access until remediated.

Section 1: Core Coverage Limits Checklist

General Liability

Requirement	Standard Operations	High-Risk / Subsurface	COI Shows	Compliant?
Each occurrence	$1,000,000	$2,000,000	___	☐
General aggregate	$2,000,000	$4,000,000	___	☐
Products/completed operations	$2,000,000	$4,000,000	___	☐
Personal/advertising injury	$1,000,000	$2,000,000	___	☐
XCU exclusions removed	Required	Required	Confirm separately	☐

Automobile Liability

Requirement	Minimum	COI Shows	Compliant?
Combined single limit	$1,000,000	___	☐
All autos (scheduled, hired, non-owned)	Required	___	☐

Workers' Compensation and Employers' Liability

Requirement	Minimum	COI Shows	Compliant?
Workers' compensation	Statutory (all states of ops)	___	☐
All States endorsement	Required for multi-state	___	☐
Employers' liability - each accident	$1,000,000	___	☐
Employers' liability - policy limit	$1,000,000	___	☐
Employers' liability - each employee	$1,000,000	___	☐
USL&H (if maritime exposure)	Required	___	☐
Jones Act (if seamen)	Required	___	☐

Pollution Liability

Requirement	Standard	High-Exposure / Remediation	Verified?
Per occurrence limit	$1,000,000-$2,000,000	$5,000,000	☐
Policy form (occurrence vs. claims-made)	Confirm	Confirm	☐
Retroactive date (claims-made)	On or before work start	On or before work start	☐
Extended reporting period available	Confirm	Confirm	☐
Hydrocarbons covered	Confirm	Confirm	☐
Produced water / drilling fluids covered	Confirm	Confirm	☐
Third-party BI/PD included	Confirm	Confirm	☐
Cleanup costs included	Confirm	Confirm	☐

Control of Well (Subsurface Operations)

Requirement	Minimum	COI Shows	Compliant?
Re-drilling and control costs	$5,000,000-$10,000,000	___	☐
Seepage, pollution, contamination	Included	___	☐
Third-party liability	Included	___	☐
Territory matches operating location	Confirm	___	☐

Umbrella / Excess Liability

Requirement	Standard	Subsurface / High-Risk	Verified?
Per occurrence	$5,000,000	$10,000,000-$25,000,000	☐
Aggregate	$5,000,000	$10,000,000-$25,000,000	☐
Follows form over GL	Required	Required	☐
Follows form over auto	Required	Required	☐
Follows form over employers' liability	Required	Required	☐
Pollution exclusion present?	Must not be excluded	Must not be excluded	☐
Self-insured retention	Note any SIR	Note any SIR	☐

Professional Liability (Engineering / Consulting)

Requirement	Minimum	COI Shows	Compliant?
Per claim	$1,000,000	___	☐
Aggregate	$2,000,000	___	☐
Retroactive date	Confirm	___	☐

Section 2: Endorsement Verification Checklist

Endorsement	Required On	Verification Method	Status
Additional Insured (Operator)	GL, auto, umbrella	Confirm with insurer	☐
Additional Insured (Pollution)	Pollution policy	Confirm with pollution insurer	☐
Additional Insured (JV partners, as applicable)	GL, auto, umbrella	Confirm with insurer	☐
Primary / Non-Contributory	GL at minimum	Request endorsement form	☐
Waiver of Subrogation	All policies including WC	Confirm with insurer	☐
XCU Exclusions Removed	GL	GL declarations or agent letter	☐
Cross-Liability / Severability	GL	Confirm with agent	☐
30-Day Cancellation Notice	All policies	Confirm policy provision	☐
MCS-90 (if interstate carrier)	Auto	COI description field + agent	☐

Section 3: Administrative and Policy Verification

Item	Check	Status
Named insured matches MSA contracting entity	Exact legal match	☐
All required entities listed as additional insured	Per MSA requirements	☐
Policy effective dates confirmed with insurer	Not just COI date	☐
Insurer AM Best rating A- or better	Verify at ambest.com	☐
Renewal calendar entry created	60-day advance request	☐
Pollution retroactive date confirmed	On or before work start	☐
Umbrella declarations reviewed for exclusions	If required by MSA	☐
COI requested from agent directly (not carrier)	Direct agent submission	☐
Review documented with date and reviewer	For audit trail	☐

Section 4: Contractor Category Quick Reference

Contractor Type	Essential Coverage Not to Miss
Drilling contractor	Control of well (calibrated to well), XCU removal, umbrella $10M+
Completion / frac	Pollution $2M+ (occurrence preferred), control of well, XCU
Wireline / well services	Control of well, XCU, umbrella follow-form over pollution
Pipeline construction	GL XCU removal, pollution, builders risk if applicable
Electrical / instrumentation	GL, auto, WC; lower umbrella acceptable
Environmental / remediation	Occurrence-form pollution $5M+, cleanup costs specifically covered
Consulting / engineering	Professional liability with appropriate retroactive date
Catering / support	GL, auto, WC; verify limits are in force

Red Flags That Require Immediate Escalation

• Named insured on COI does not match MSA contracting entity
• Pollution policy is claims-made with retroactive date after work start
• Umbrella policy excludes pollution events
• XCU exclusion removal not confirmed for subsurface or hazardous work
• Any required coverage type absent from COI
• Any limit below MSA minimum - even by $1
• Insurer rated below A- by AM Best
• Agent cannot confirm endorsements within 48 hours

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I use this checklist for every oil and gas contractor? This checklist covers the most common requirements in upstream oil and gas MSAs. Your specific MSA may require higher limits, additional coverages, or different endorsement language. Always use your actual MSA insurance exhibit as the governing document.

How do I track which contractors have completed each step? At scale, a compliance platform provides dashboards showing per-contractor, per-coverage compliance status. For smaller programs, a spreadsheet tracking each checklist item by contractor and date of last verification is a minimum viable approach.

What if a contractor provides a COI that satisfies the checklist but the insurer is poorly rated? AM Best rating below A- is a material risk factor. Even if limits are technically compliant, a financially unstable insurer may deny claims or be unable to pay them. Require A- or better as a precondition of approval.

How often does an oilfield contractor need to provide a new COI? At minimum annually, aligned with policy renewals. Also required when a contractor begins work on a new asset, when scope of work changes materially, and any time a policy is cancelled or replaced.

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This checklist is a tool, not a substitute for the MSA. Use it in conjunction with the governing contract to ensure every contractor on your assets meets your actual requirements.

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