The quick answer
COI stands for certificate of insurance. It’s a standard one-page form, issued by a moving company’s insurance broker, that shows which insurance policies the mover carries, the limits on each and the dates they run. Your building’s managing agent uses it to check that if a crew scuffs the lobby or dents the elevator, there’s real insurance behind the company that did it.
Co-ops, condos and most professionally managed rental buildings in New York ask for one before they’ll let movers through the door. Small walk-ups with a landlord who lives upstairs often don’t. If you’re not sure, ask. It takes one email.
What’s on a moving COI
- The insured: the moving company’s legal name
- Coverage and limits: usually general liability, auto liability and workers’ compensation, and sometimes an umbrella policy
- The certificate holder: usually the building’s owner or managing agent, written exactly the way they ask
- Additional insureds: the parties the building wants named, often the owner, the managing agent and sometimes the co-op or condo board
- Policy dates that cover your moving day
How buildings use it
The managing agent checks the COI against the building’s own requirements. If a name doesn’t match their wording exactly, or a limit is lower than they ask for, they reject it and the movers can’t start. In our experience that’s the most common reason a moving day stalls at the service entrance.
Typical requirements
Requirements vary by building, but many ask for general liability of $1 million per occurrence and $2 million in total, plus workers’ compensation and auto liability. Some larger buildings ask for higher limits through an umbrella policy. We carry $2 million in liability and $100,000 cargo cover per truck, which meets what most buildings we work with ask for. If a building wants more, we’ll tell you well before the day.
What else the building may want
A COI is often part of a bigger package. Many buildings also want the service elevator booked, moves kept to set hours (often weekdays, 9am to 5pm), floors and elevator walls padded, and sometimes a refundable move deposit from the resident. Those rules come from your building, not from the city, so the only way to know them is to ask.
Get an exact written quote, usually back within minutes.
When to ask for it
Ask your building for its COI requirements, usually a sample COI, as soon as you have a move date. A week ahead is comfortable. Forward it to your mover, and they’ll have their broker issue a certificate that matches. Ours usually goes out within 1 business day, sent straight to the managing agent with you copied.
Remember you might need two: one for the building you’re leaving and one for the building you’re moving into. They are often run by different management companies with different wording.
What goes wrong, and how to avoid it
- The certificate holder doesn’t match the building’s legal name. Copy it exactly from the sample.
- The building wanted extra parties named that weren’t passed on. Send the full sample, not a summary.
- The COI went to the doorman instead of the person who approves moves. Ask who that is.
- The request came in the day before. Many managing agents need 48 hours or more to review it.
Who handles it with us
Priya, our move coordinator, handles every COI. Send your building’s sample by chat, text or email and she’ll get the certificate issued, send it to the building and confirm it’s approved. It’s included with every apartment move and office move at no extra cost. Moving within Manhattan? Our Manhattan movers page covers elevator bookings and building hours too.
