What property managers require of janitorial and cleaning vendors: common-area and turnover cleaning contracts and how to prove you meet them

What a property manager requires of a cleaning vendor

QUICK ANSWER

A property manager's cleaning contract typically requires general liability of $1M per occurrence and $2M aggregate with the owner and management company as additional insureds on a primary and non-contributory basis, client-property crime coverage or a janitorial bond, statutory workers' compensation with $1M employers' liability and a waiver, commercial auto or hired and non-owned coverage of $1M, an umbrella of $1M to $2M, background checks for staff entering units, and certificates filed with the compliance service.

Reviewed by Michael LaBarbera, Licensed property & casualty agent, Provident Financial Group · Reviewed Oct 11, 2026 Updated Oct 14, 2026

Typical requirements and how to check them
Requirement	What they usually ask for	How to check what you have
Commercial general liability	$1M each occurrence / $2M aggregate with the owner and manager as additional insureds, primary and non-contributory; damage to premises rented or occupied at $100K or more; no exclusion for work in occupied residential units	Dec page limits, the additional insured form, the damage-to-premises limit and the exclusions page.
Third-party crime or janitorial bond	$25K to $100K per occurrence for employee theft of residents', tenants' or the building's property	A crime policy with the client property extension or a janitorial services bond; standard employee dishonesty covers only your own property.
Workers' compensation and employers' liability	Statutory in each state of the portfolio plus employers' liability of $1M / $1M / $1M, with a waiver	Information page with each state, Part Two limits and the waiver endorsement.
Commercial auto or hired and non-owned	$1M combined single limit on company vehicles, or hired and non-owned auto where staff drive their own cars between properties	Auto dec page or the hired and non-owned endorsement on the general liability or auto policy.
Umbrella or excess liability	$1M to $2M following form over general liability, auto and employers' liability	Umbrella dec page and underlying schedule.
Background checks and key control	Background checks for staff who enter occupied units or hold keys and fobs, a key control procedure and lost-key responsibility	Vendor onboarding documents; a lost-key endorsement on the general liability or crime policy where available.
Chemical and slip hazards	Wet-floor signage practice, safety data sheets on site, and no exclusion for the cleaning products used	Not insurance, except the exclusions page: confirm no exclusion for chemicals or for floor-care work such as stripping and waxing.
Certificates through a compliance service	Certificates and endorsement copies uploaded to the manager's compliance service, expired at each renewal	The service's requirements sheet; a live certificate with endorsements attached is accepted by most.

Requirement

What they usually ask for

How to check what you have

Commercial general liability

$1M each occurrence / $2M aggregate with the owner and manager as additional insureds, primary and non-contributory; damage to premises rented or occupied at $100K or more; no exclusion for work in occupied residential units

Dec page limits, the additional insured form, the damage-to-premises limit and the exclusions page.

Third-party crime or janitorial bond

$25K to $100K per occurrence for employee theft of residents', tenants' or the building's property

A crime policy with the client property extension or a janitorial services bond; standard employee dishonesty covers only your own property.

Workers' compensation and employers' liability

Statutory in each state of the portfolio plus employers' liability of $1M / $1M / $1M, with a waiver

Information page with each state, Part Two limits and the waiver endorsement.

Commercial auto or hired and non-owned

$1M combined single limit on company vehicles, or hired and non-owned auto where staff drive their own cars between properties

Auto dec page or the hired and non-owned endorsement on the general liability or auto policy.

Umbrella or excess liability

$1M to $2M following form over general liability, auto and employers' liability

Umbrella dec page and underlying schedule.

Background checks and key control

Background checks for staff who enter occupied units or hold keys and fobs, a key control procedure and lost-key responsibility

Vendor onboarding documents; a lost-key endorsement on the general liability or crime policy where available.

Chemical and slip hazards

Wet-floor signage practice, safety data sheets on site, and no exclusion for the cleaning products used

Not insurance, except the exclusions page: confirm no exclusion for chemicals or for floor-care work such as stripping and waxing.

Certificates through a compliance service

Certificates and endorsement copies uploaded to the manager's compliance service, expired at each renewal

The service's requirements sheet; a live certificate with endorsements attached is accepted by most.

What the manager is protecting

Cleaning vendors hold keys, work in occupied units and common areas, and use chemicals and floor machines after hours. The manager's program protects the owners in the portfolio from theft claims, slips on wet floors, damage to finishes and fires, and from a cleaner's injury becoming the owner's claim.

The lines a cleaning vendor program names

General liability with the owners and manager added, a raised damage-to-premises limit and no exclusion for occupied residential work. Client-property crime coverage or a janitorial bond. Workers' compensation with a waiver in every portfolio state. Auto or hired and non-owned. An umbrella. Background checks, key control and lost-key responsibility. Certificates filed with the compliance service that controls work orders.

How to check your policies against the program

Get the compliance service's requirements sheet. Match the general liability limits, confirm the additional insured and primary forms, and the damage-to-premises limit. Confirm the crime policy's client property extension or the janitorial bond at the required amount. Check the waiver on the workers' compensation policy, the auto or hired and non-owned coverage and the umbrella schedule. Have the background check and key control procedures ready for onboarding.

Keep the certificate current

Compliance services expire certificates at each renewal and stop work orders the same day. A live certificate link stays current as policies renew, carries the endorsements as attachments and notifies the manager when a line changes, which keeps the cleaning schedule running across every property.

Questions people actually ask

We clean vacant units on turnover. Why does the manager want a crime bond?

Because staff also hold keys and work in common areas and occupied units, and a resident's claim of theft lands on the manager. Client-property crime coverage or a janitorial bond pays it; general liability and standard employee dishonesty coverage do not.

Our staff use their own cars between properties. Do we need commercial auto?

Hired and non-owned auto coverage satisfies most programs for a business whose staff drive their own cars; personal auto policies exclude business use, which is why the program asks for it.

What is damage to premises rented or occupied and why is the limit raised?

It is the part of general liability that pays for fire or similar damage to space you work in. Managers raise the limit because floor machines, chemicals and after-hours work are how cleaning fires start.

Do turnover-cleaning claims come after the work?

Rarely; the exposure is during the work and from theft, which is why these programs stress crime coverage and background checks rather than completed operations.