Blanket vs Scheduled Additional Insured
Whether to add each additional insured by name on a scheduled endorsement or use a blanket form that automatically covers any party required by written contract. The decision impacts administrative burden, coverage certainty, and certificate issuance speed.
Blanket Additional Insured
Advantages
- +Automatically extends additional insured status to any party required by written contract without endorsement requests
- +Eliminates delays in certificate issuance when onboarding new tower clients or GCs
- +Reduces administrative overhead for companies managing 20 or more active MSAs simultaneously
- +Avoids the risk of forgetting to schedule a required party before starting work on site
Disadvantages
- -Coverage is triggered only when a written contract exists, requiring disciplined contract execution before work begins
- -Some blanket forms use narrower coverage language than the best scheduled endorsements
- -Underwriters may charge a higher flat premium to account for unknown additional insured exposure
- -Certain clients may not accept blanket language and demand to be specifically scheduled
Scheduled Additional Insured
Advantages
- +Each additional insured is named explicitly, providing clear documentation of coverage intent
- +Allows use of the broadest available endorsement form for each specific relationship
- +Some clients require seeing their name on the actual endorsement, not just the certificate
- +Underwriters can assess and price the exposure for each scheduled party individually
Disadvantages
- -Requires a separate endorsement request for each new client, creating turnaround delays
- -Administrative burden scales linearly with client count, straining operations teams
- -Risk of coverage gaps if work begins before the scheduled endorsement is issued
- -Mid-term endorsement fees from the carrier add transactional costs throughout the policy year
Bottom line for tower contractors
Blanket additional insured is the operational standard for active tower contractors. The speed and consistency advantages outweigh the marginal coverage language differences. Keep contracts executed before mobilization to ensure the blanket triggers properly, and maintain a scheduled endorsement only for clients with unusual manuscript requirements.