The Duncan Group — Insurance, Risk Management, Benefits
Timber framing of a building under construction

Construction & Surety

The market should understand how you actually build.

Contractors are often summarized by revenue, payroll, trade and loss history.

That does not always explain the risk.

Speak With a Risk AdvisorSee Our Approach

How work is subcontracted, how drivers are managed, how certificates are controlled, how contracts allocate risk, how safety is enforced and how losses are addressed can materially change the underwriting picture.

The Duncan Group works to make those differences visible.

Practice areas

Roofing
Height exposure, crew structure, subcontracted labor and workers' compensation drive both market appetite and program structure.
General Contractors
Contractual risk transfer, subcontractor qualification, project type and completed operations shape the account.
Trade Contractors
Mechanical, electrical, plumbing, concrete and other trades with distinct fleet, tool and jobsite profiles.
Specialty Contractors
Service, maintenance and specialty work where operations differ meaningfully from new construction.

The risk environment

Construction risk is shaped by contracts, subcontractors, vehicles, jobsite safety, workers' compensation, completed operations and claims history.

Two contractors with identical payroll can operate very differently: one self-performs with a trained crew and formal safety enforcement, the other relies on subcontracted labor with inconsistent agreements and certificate tracking.

The Duncan Group focuses on understanding how the contractor actually operates—not simply applying payroll and revenue to an insurance submission. We help contractors identify the controls, documentation and risk-management practices that may materially influence how the market evaluates the account.

What we evaluate

A starting point for discovery. Not every item applies to every organization.

  • Residential versus commercial work
  • New construction versus service work
  • Height exposure
  • Subcontractor usage
  • Subcontractor agreements
  • Additional insured requirements
  • Certificate controls
  • Waiver of subrogation
  • Driver qualification
  • Fleet safety
  • MVR procedures
  • Jobsite safety
  • Fall protection
  • Workers' compensation
  • Experience modification factor
  • Loss history
  • Completed operations
  • Contractual risk transfer
  • Tools and equipment
  • Inland marine
  • Pollution
  • Cyber
  • Umbrella and excess liability

Common coverage areas

Lines frequently involved in these programs. Structure depends on the operation.

  • General liability
  • Workers' compensation
  • Commercial auto
  • Inland marine and contractors equipment
  • Builders risk
  • Installation floater
  • Umbrella and excess liability
  • Professional and contractors pollution
  • Cyber
  • Employment practices liability
  • Surety coordination

Risk management

Jobsite safety enforcement
Written programs matter less than evidence that they are used: inspections, corrective action, toolbox talks and accountability.
Fleet and driver management
Hiring standards, MVR review frequency, telematics and post-incident procedures are underwriting facts when they are documented.
Experience modification strategy
Claims handling, reserve review, return-to-work planning and unit statistical accuracy managed well before renewal.
Certificate and contract administration
Tracking incoming certificates and confirming required status is an operational discipline, not a filing task. Contract language should be reviewed with qualified counsel.

The subcontractor may do the work. The contractor may still own the risk.

Subcontracted work does not automatically transfer the exposure. Whether risk actually moves depends on qualification, agreements, insurance requirements, certificates, additional insured status, indemnification, supervision and recordkeeping.

We review how those controls operate in practice — not only whether a form exists — and help contractors document them for the marketplace.

Nothing here is legal advice. Contract and indemnity language should be reviewed with qualified counsel.

What we review

  • Subcontractor qualification
  • Written agreements
  • Insurance requirements
  • Certificates
  • Additional insured status
  • Indemnification
  • Work quality
  • Supervision
  • Recordkeeping

Featured Specialty · Roofing

Roofing Risk Deserves a Specialist

Roofing contractors face a distinct combination of exposures: work at height, weather-driven schedules, heavy subcontractor use, completed-operations liability and a marketplace where many carriers restrict or decline the class.

Roofers Specialty is The Duncan Group's dedicated roofing-focused practice, built specifically around the insurance and risk-management needs of roofing contractors — from program structure and safety to claims and renewal strategy.

Roofers Specialty is powered by The Duncan Group.

Explore Roofers Specialty(opens in a new tab)

Insurance & risk areas

  • General Liability
  • Excess / Umbrella
  • Commercial Auto
  • Workers' Compensation
  • Property
  • Bonding & Surety
  • Claims Advocacy
  • Subcontractor Risk Management
  • Safety & Compliance
  • Premium Negotiation Strategy
  • Alternative Risk / Captive solutions, where appropriate

Underwriting strategy

Payroll and revenue do not describe a crew.

An underwriter reviewing a contractor can see class codes, payroll, revenue, trade and prior losses.

What is often missing:

Documenting these practices allows the market to evaluate the contractor rather than the class code.

  • How work is actually divided between employees and subcontractors
  • Whether subcontractor agreements are written, current and enforced
  • How certificates and additional insured status are verified
  • How drivers are qualified and monitored
  • How fall protection and jobsite safety are supervised
  • What changed after a prior significant claim
  • How the contractor selects and supervises the work it takes on
  • Auto and fleet losses are a recurring severity driver for contractors with significant road exposure.
  • Workers' compensation frequency tends to follow crew experience, task supervision and return-to-work discipline.
  • Completed operations and construction defect allegations can emerge years after the work.
  • Who ultimately pays a jobsite claim frequently depends on the contract and the certificate, not the incident.

The Duncan Approach

The same discipline, applied to construction & surety.

  1. 01

    Understand

    RiskDiagnostic

  2. 02

    Map

    Risk Mapping

  3. 03

    Improve

    RiskGuard

  4. 04

    Position

    Underwriting & Premium Negotiation Strategy

  5. 05

    Transfer

    Marketplace Execution

  6. 06

    Manage

    Ongoing Risk Management

Where we focus within this practice reflects what tends to matter most to the market and to the operation itself.

Subcontractor management
Written agreements, insurance requirements, additional insured status and certificate tracking reviewed against how work is actually performed.
Fleet and driver controls
Hiring standards, MVR review, telematics and training are underwriting facts — when they are documented.
Workers' compensation strategy
Experience modification analysis, claims handling and return-to-work planning managed well before renewal.

The Duncan Difference

Related RiskThoughts

Industry intelligence covering construction & surety is in preparation. RiskThoughts is our research and market-intelligence publication.

Visit RiskThoughts

Other practices

Speak with a risk advisor.

Tell us how you build, who you subcontract to and what your current program looks like.

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