Is Your Cleaner Insured and Bonded? How to Verify in Florida

An insured and bonded cleaning service in Florida carries at minimum general liability insurance ($1M limit), a janitorial bond ($10,000–$25,000), and workers' compensation if they have employees. Each of those covers a different risk, none replaces the others, and any legitimate company can email you documentation within a day. This guide breaks down what each product covers, how to verify a certificate is real, and how to read the fine print. For how our matched partners are vetted, see the vetting process behind every company in our network.

The three protections — and what each actually covers

Why you need all three, not one

"Bonded" alone doesn't protect you if a cleaner breaks your $8,000 dining table — that's a general liability claim. "Insured" alone doesn't protect you if a cleaner slips a $2,500 watch off your dresser — that's a bond claim. And neither covers a cleaner who tears a rotator cuff moving your fridge, which is a workers' comp claim. Florida law requires workers' comp for any business with 4+ employees (Fla. Stat. § 440.02) — cleaning companies with 1099 misclassifications routinely skip this and leave the liability on your homeowners policy.

How to verify a certificate of insurance (COI)

1. Request a COI directly from the cleaning company via email
2. Check the carrier name — legitimate: Hiscox, Next, Thimble, Chubb, Nationwide, Hartford. Not-legitimate: names you can't Google
3. Verify the policy is active on the date of your service, not just "effective"
4. Check that the insured name matches the company name on the invoice
5. Confirm the coverage limit — $1M is standard; lower is a red flag
6. For property managers: request to be listed as an additional insured
7. Call the carrier's number on the COI (not the cleaning company's) to confirm the policy exists

Red flags on fake or expired COIs

• The certificate holder field is blank or unrelated to the cleaning company
• Effective dates are in the past — the policy has already expired
• Carrier name is misspelled or reads like an LLC ("Sunshine Insurance Group LLC")
• No phone number for the producer/agent
• Coverage limits show $10,000 or $50,000 in the general liability box — those are bond limits, not GL limits
• The document was created in Word and doesn't use the ACORD 25 template

How to verify a janitorial bond

Bonds are issued by surety companies (Travelers, RLI, and similar). Ask for the surety name and bond number. Cross-check on the surety's website; most publish a verification search. The bond amount ($10K, $15K, $25K) is the total dishonesty coverage — meaning if three cleaners each steal $5,000 across separate visits, the bond covers up to the aggregate limit. Companies claiming "we're bonded" without a surety and bond number are almost always self-bonding, which is legally meaningless.

Workers' comp: the hidden question

The single most under-asked question when hiring a Florida cleaner is "do you carry workers' compensation on your employees?" Florida requires it for any non-construction employer with 4+ employees (Fla. Stat. § 440.02(17)). Cleaners misclassified as 1099 independents typically have no comp coverage. If one of them is injured cleaning your home, the exposure lands on your homeowners policy — which typically has a specific "domestic worker" exclusion. Ask for the workers' comp COI as well as the general liability COI.

How much coverage is enough

What to do if something goes wrong

1. Document immediately: photos, timestamps, and a written note of what happened
2. Email the cleaning company within 24 hours, attach photos, cite the specific damage/theft
3. Request a claim number from their insurance carrier or surety within 72 hours
4. If they stall, contact the carrier or surety directly — you have the COI
5. File a small claims case if amounts are below $8,000 (Florida limit) and the carrier denies
6. Report to your local Better Business Bureau and Florida DBPR if the company was clearly negligent

Insured and bonded cleaning service FAQ

What does "insured and bonded" actually mean for a cleaning service?

Insured means the company carries general liability insurance to cover property damage or injury. Bonded means they carry a janitorial bond that covers theft by employees. The two products cover different risks and don't replace each other — a legitimate Florida cleaning company has both, plus workers' compensation if they have employees.

How do I verify a cleaning service is insured in Florida?

Request a certificate of insurance (COI) directly from the company. Check the carrier name is legitimate (Hiscox, Next, Thimble, Chubb, and similar), the policy is active on your service date, and coverage limits are $1M/$2M. Call the carrier at the number on the COI — not the cleaning company — to confirm the policy exists.

Is a $10,000 bond enough for a cleaning company?

For most Florida homes, a $25,000 bond is recommended. $10,000 is the legal minimum for many county business tax receipts but leaves a gap if multiple items are stolen across visits, since the bond covers aggregate loss, not per-incident.

Does homeowners insurance cover a cleaner damaging my property?

Some, but with limits and exclusions. Most Florida homeowners policies exclude damage caused by paid workers you employed. The cleaner's general liability insurance is the correct payer. If they don't have one, you're paying the deductible on your policy — and it counts against your loss history.