CG 20 26 is the ISO endorsement that adds a person or organization named in its schedule as an additional insured on your general liability policy for liability arising out of your ongoing operations or out of premises you own or rent. It is the general purpose member of the additional insured family, written without the owner and contractor framing of CG 20 10, which makes it the form of choice when the party demanding insured status does not fit the construction mold.
Municipalities issuing permits, event venues hosting your booth, sponsors of a race your company organizes, and community associations approving your use of common areas all routinely require additional insured status without hiring you to perform operations for them. CG 20 26 is how those requests get honored. This page explains what the endorsement covers, how it differs from CG 20 10, and how its schedule works.
What does CG 20 26 do?
The endorsement amends the Who Is An Insured provisions of your commercial general liability coverage part to include the person or organization shown in its schedule.
The scheduled party becomes an insured for bodily injury, property damage, and personal and advertising injury, but only when the injury or damage is caused in whole or in part by your acts or omissions or by the acts or omissions of those acting on your behalf. That causation requirement mirrors the modern construction forms, so the additional insured gets no protection for its own sole negligence.
The grant then runs along two paths. The first covers liability arising in the performance of your ongoing operations. The second covers liability arising in connection with premises you own or rent. That premises path is something CG 20 10 does not offer, and it is why CG 20 26 works for parties whose exposure to you is locational rather than contractual, such as a landlord's lender or a municipality concerned about your storefront's sidewalk.
Like the rest of the additional insured series since the 04 13 revisions, the endorsement caps itself three ways. Coverage applies only to the extent permitted by law. If a contract requires you to provide the coverage, it will not be broader than that contract requires. And the most the insurer pays on the additional insured's behalf is the lesser of the amount the contract requires and the limits actually available on the policy.
How does CG 20 26 compare to CG 20 10?
Both endorsements are scheduled additional insured forms with the same in whole or in part causation standard, and both stop short of the products completed operations hazard. The difference is the relationship each one assumes:
| Feature | CG 20 26 | CG 20 10 |
|---|---|---|
| Assumed relationship | None, any designated person or organization | You perform operations for the additional insured |
| Ongoing operations coverage | Yes | Yes, for operations performed for the scheduled party |
| Premises based coverage | Yes, premises you own or rent | No |
| Written contract requirement | No | No in the scheduled version, yes in blanket wording |
| Completed operations | No | No, pair with CG 20 37 |
| Typical requester | Municipality, venue, sponsor, permit authority | Project owner, general contractor |
The practical rule brokers follow is to match the form to the relationship. A general contractor upstream of your subcontract should get CG 20 10, usually paired with CG 20 37 for completed operations. A party with no operational relationship to you, or one whose concern is your premises, gets CG 20 26. Using CG 20 26 for a construction upstream party technically works for ongoing operations but invites disputes, because the contract almost certainly asked for the construction pair by number.
How does the schedule work?
The schedule is a simple name field. Whoever is entered there holds additional insured status for the duration of the policy period, with no requirement that a written contract exist between you and the scheduled party. That makes the endorsement more forgiving than blanket construction wording, where a missing signature can void the status entirely.
It also makes precision matter, because the named entity is the insured entity. A schedule reading City of Oakhurst does not cover the Oakhurst Redevelopment Authority, and an event sponsor's parent company is not covered by an entry naming only the subsidiary.
Many carriers also file blanket variants that extend CG 20 26 style status automatically to any party a written contract requires you to add. Those variants reintroduce the written contract condition, so the certificate request and the underlying agreement need to line up before the loss. When a certificate holder asks for additional insured wording with no contract in place, the scheduled CG 20 26 is usually the cleaner instrument.
Keep the limits math in mind as well. The endorsement adds insureds without adding limits, so every additional insured shares your occurrence and aggregate limits with you. A busy schedule of municipalities and venues quietly multiplies the claimants who can draw down the same aggregate.
Where can you see the actual form?
Menlo does not host ISO forms because they are copyrighted by Insurance Services Office, Inc. You can read the real text through your own policy, which attaches every endorsement issued on it, or by asking your broker for the specimen your carrier files. Regulator approved filings are also publicly viewable through SERFF Filing Access, the state filing system, though the forms there remain copyrighted and are for reading, not copying.
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between CG 20 26 and CG 20 10?
CG 20 10 assumes the additional insured is a party you perform operations for, typically a project owner or general contractor, and covers only those ongoing operations. CG 20 26 drops that relationship requirement and adds a premises path, covering liability arising from your ongoing operations or in connection with premises you own or rent. Neither form covers the completed operations hazard.
Does CG 20 26 require a written contract?
The standard scheduled edition does not. Whoever is named in the schedule holds the status regardless of any underlying agreement. Carrier filed blanket variants that extend the same status automatically usually do require an executed written contract, so read the wording actually attached to the policy before promising anything on a certificate.
Does CG 20 26 cover completed operations?
No. The operations path of the grant applies to your ongoing operations, so claims arising after your work is finished and put to use fall outside it. A party that needs protection for the completed operations hazard needs CG 20 37 or equivalent wording on your policy.
Who typically asks to be added by CG 20 26?
Parties outside the construction chain. Common examples are municipalities issuing permits or licenses, event venues and festivals, sponsors, community associations, and lenders or other stakeholders concerned with premises you own or rent. When the requester is an equipment lessor, a vendor relationship, or your landlord, ISO publishes specific endorsements that fit those relationships better.
This guide is for educational purposes and summarizes standard ISO policy language in Menlo's own words. Form numbers and titles are cited for identification only, and Menlo Insurance Services is not affiliated with Insurance Services Office, Inc. Your policy's specific terms, conditions, and endorsements control. Talk to a licensed broker about your actual exposures.