Per Project Aggregate

Overview

A Per Project Aggregate is a modification to a standard Commercial General Liability (CGL) policy that makes the General Aggregate limit apply independently to each project or job site. Without this endorsement, a single General Aggregate limit is shared across all of the insured's operations for the entire policy period. With it, each project receives its own full aggregate, significantly increasing the total available coverage.

How It Works

Under a standard CGL policy, the General Aggregate is the maximum the insurer will pay for all covered claims (excluding products/completed operations) during the policy period. If a contractor has a $2,000,000 General Aggregate and works on ten projects simultaneously, claims from any project erode the same $2,000,000 pool. A single large claim on one project could exhaust the aggregate, leaving no coverage for the other nine.

The Per Project Aggregate endorsement (ISO form CG 25 03 or equivalent) changes this structure. Each designated project or job site receives its own separate General Aggregate. Using the same example:

• Without Per Project: One $2,000,000 aggregate shared across all ten projects.
• With Per Project: Ten separate $2,000,000 aggregates — one per project — providing up to $20,000,000 in total available coverage.

The endorsement defines "project" based on the job site location. All operations at a single location are grouped under one per-project aggregate. Operations not attributable to a specific project (such as the insured's own premises) remain under a standard aggregate.

Key details:

• The Per Occurrence limit remains unchanged — it applies to each occurrence regardless of the aggregate structure.
• The Products/Completed Operations aggregate is separate and is not affected by the per-project endorsement (unless a separate endorsement modifies it).
• The endorsement does not increase per-occurrence limits, only the aggregate available per project.

Compliance Relevance

Per Project Aggregate endorsements are among the most commonly required modifications in construction and commercial real estate:

• Contractual requirement: General contractors and property owners routinely require subcontractors to carry Per Project Aggregate coverage. This ensures that claims on other projects do not deplete the aggregate available for their project.
• Certificate verification: The ACORD 25 includes a checkbox or notation for "Per Project" aggregate in the General Liability section. The "Policy" or "Project" indicator in the aggregate field should show "Project."
• Risk isolation: For property managers with multiple buildings served by the same vendor, Per Project Aggregate ensures each property has its own pool of coverage.
• Cost consideration: Per Project Aggregate endorsements increase premiums because the insurer's total potential exposure increases. Some smaller contractors may not carry this endorsement unless required.

Example

A general contractor has a CGL policy with $1,000,000 per occurrence and $2,000,000 General Aggregate, with a Per Project Aggregate endorsement. The contractor works on three building projects simultaneously. A series of incidents at Project A results in $1,800,000 in claims, nearly exhausting Project A's aggregate. However, Projects B and C each retain their own full $2,000,000 aggregate. When an incident occurs at Project B, the full $1,000,000 per-occurrence limit is available — unaffected by the claims at Project A.