Verifying a Contractor: WSIB Clearance and Liability Insurance
Asking for insurance documents is easy. Verifying them is the part that protects you. What to request, how to check it with the issuer, and what these coverages do and do not cover.
There are two situations you are protecting yourself against when you let a crew onto your property: someone gets hurt, and something gets damaged. Workplace coverage and liability insurance address those separately. Most homeowners ask to see documents. Far fewer verify them, and a document that has not been verified is just a piece of paper somebody printed.
WSIB Clearance Certificates
The Workplace Safety and Insurance Board administers Ontario's workplace injury insurance system. A WSIB clearance certificate is a document confirming that a business's account is in good standing with WSIB for a stated period. Contractors can obtain clearance certificates for their business, and they can be requested and verified through WSIB's online clearance service. The certificate is time-limited, which is why the dates on it matter as much as the name.
What to Ask For
Ask the contractor for their exact legal business name and their WSIB account or firm number. With that information you can request or verify clearance directly through WSIB rather than relying on a copy the contractor supplies. Confirm three things: that the legal name matches the name on your contract exactly, that the certificate is currently valid for the period covering your project, and that you obtained or confirmed it through WSIB and not only from the contractor.
What This Does Not Tell You
Whether and how a particular business must be registered with WSIB depends on its circumstances, and the construction sector has its own rules including for independent operators. Do not accept a homeowner-level explanation of those rules from anyone, including the contractor. If a company tells you it is exempt, ask them to explain in writing why, and take that explanation to WSIB directly. WSIB is the authority on its own requirements — go to the source rather than accepting an interpretation.
Commercial General Liability Insurance
Liability insurance responds when the contractor's operations cause property damage or injury to a third party — a dropped bundle through a skylight, damage to a neighbour's vehicle, a fire, water damage from a roof left open. It is the coverage that stands between an accident on your property and a fight about who pays. Ask for a certificate of insurance issued by the contractor's broker or insurer.
- ✓Confirm the named insured on the certificate matches the legal name on your contract exactly, including the operating name.
- ✓Check the policy effective and expiry dates, and make sure they cover the whole period of your project — including a schedule that slips.
- ✓Check that the described operations cover roofing work; some policies carve out particular activities.
- ✓Note the broker or insurer contact details printed on the certificate.
- ✓Call that broker directly and confirm the policy is in force. This is a routine call for a broker and it is the only step that actually verifies the document.
- ✓Ask your own home insurer or broker whether they want anything specific from the contractor before work begins.
Being Named as an Additional Insured
On larger projects, homeowners sometimes ask to be named as an additional insured on the contractor's policy for the duration of the work. Whether this is appropriate and what it accomplishes depends on the policy and the project, so it is a question for your own insurance broker rather than something to insist on blindly. Raise it with your broker when you tell them about the upcoming work — which you should do regardless.
The rule that matters: verify with the issuer, not with the contractor. A certificate emailed by the company being checked proves that they have a PDF. A confirmation from the broker or from WSIB proves the coverage exists today.
What Liability Insurance Does Not Cover
This is widely misunderstood. Liability insurance generally responds to damage the contractor causes, not to the quality of the work itself. If the roof leaks because a flashing was installed wrong, that is typically a workmanship issue addressed through the contractor's warranty and, if necessary, through contract law — not through their liability policy. Insurance and warranty are two different protections, and having one does not substitute for the other.
Subcontractors
If any part of the work is subcontracted, the coverage question repeats for each subcontractor. Ask the general contractor directly: are subcontractors used, and does the general contractor's coverage extend to their work, or does each carry its own? Get the answer in writing in the contract. The scenario you are avoiding is an injury or a loss where the general contractor points at the sub and the sub turns out to have no coverage at all.
Red Flags When You Ask
Watch for a certificate with dates that have passed, or that expire mid-project. Watch for a named insured that does not match the contract — a personal name where the contract says a corporation, or an old operating name. Watch for reluctance, delay, or an offer to 'send it later' after you have signed. Watch for a company that describes its whole crew as independent contractors as a way of sidestepping the question. And watch for anyone who tells you that verification is unnecessary because they have been doing this for years.
Your Verification Checklist
- ✓Legal business name, operating name and business address, in writing.
- ✓WSIB account or firm number, and clearance confirmed through WSIB directly for the project period.
- ✓Certificate of liability insurance naming the same legal entity as the contract.
- ✓Policy dates confirmed to span the project, verified by a call to the broker on the certificate.
- ✓Written answer on whether subcontractors are used and whose coverage applies to them.
- ✓Your own insurance broker notified that the work is happening.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I verify a WSIB clearance certificate?
Through WSIB directly. WSIB operates an online clearance service where clearance can be requested and validated using the business's legal name and account information. Ask the contractor for that information and confirm through WSIB rather than relying only on a copy they send you.
How much liability coverage should a roofing contractor carry?
There is no single figure that suits every project, and the right answer depends on the work, the property and your own insurer's expectations. The useful step is to ask what the limits are, then ask your own insurance broker whether those limits are appropriate for a project on your home. Your broker has no stake in the roofing contract and will tell you straight.
What happens if a worker is injured on my property and the contractor has no coverage?
That is precisely the situation these checks exist to avoid, and the potential consequences for a homeowner are serious enough that it is not worth taking on trust. If a contractor cannot or will not produce verifiable coverage, do not let them start.
Does a contractor's insurance cover a leak in my new roof?
Generally no. Defective workmanship is usually addressed by the contractor's workmanship warranty and the contract, not by their liability policy. That is why you need both a verified insurance certificate and a written workmanship warranty — they protect against different things.
Should I ask for these documents before or after choosing a contractor?
Before. Ask every contractor you are seriously considering, at quote stage. It costs you nothing, it takes them minutes, and how each one responds to a routine, reasonable request is itself useful information about how they will handle the project.
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