Waiver of Subrogation in Commercial Leases
A commercial lease waiver of subrogation should be reviewed against both the lease and the relevant insurance policies. The first task is to identify which party, property, loss and coverage line the provision addresses. A tenant’s liability certificate alone may not answer a question about property-insurer recovery.
The Washington DES contract-insurance manual discusses lease insurance and recommends examining actual insurer provisions. The practical approach is to map the lease obligations before requesting documents, then have counsel and the brokers resolve wording and coverage questions.
Build a landlord-and-tenant matrix
List each required coverage separately: building property, tenant improvements, contents, business income, general liability and any other lease-specific line. Beside each, record the responsible party, required evidence, waiver wording and review status.
Do not infer symmetry. A lease may assign different obligations to landlord and tenant. Ask whether a provision is intended to be mutual, which parties it describes and how it relates to the insurance each party actually maintains. These are questions for the lease reviewer, not conclusions that a certificate checkbox can settle.
Request the evidence for the right policy
For property evidence, the broker may provide a property document such as an ACORD 28 where appropriate. For liability, an ACORD 25 reports the listed liability policies. See ACORD 25 vs ACORD 28 for that document distinction.
For the waiver itself, request the supporting policy provision or endorsement. Compare insured entities, premises, policy dates and contractual prerequisites. Ask the broker to explain any mismatch rather than adding lease language to the certificate yourself.
A hypothetical retail lease review
Maple Retail leases a unit in Harbor Plaza. The lease asks for property insurance on specified tenant improvements and a corresponding waiver arrangement. Maple supplies a liability certificate with a GL waiver indicator. The property manager asks for the property-policy evidence and supporting wording; it does not mark the property requirement satisfied from the GL row.
The example illustrates a document mismatch, not a prediction about who would recover money after a fire. The actual policies and lease would determine that analysis.
Keep a renewal record for each obligation
Record separate expiration dates when property and liability policies renew at different times. Save the lease version, broker correspondence, supporting pages and the reviewer’s decision together. A new tenant name, assignment or carrier change should trigger a fresh identity and wording check.
Use the commercial tenant insurance checklist and portfolio COI workflow. Certy can support certificate collection and reminders; it does not interpret lease enforceability or create insurance rights.
Frequently asked questions
Does a lease waiver automatically change the insurance policy?
Do not assume so. Ask each party’s broker to identify the policy terms or endorsements that support the lease arrangement.
Is a tenant liability COI enough for a property-policy waiver?
No. Review the policy line actually addressed by the lease requirement and obtain the appropriate supporting evidence.