You landed a paid gig. The client sounds great, the job sounds straightforward, and you're ready to fly. Then the email comes: "Before we can confirm, can you send proof of insurance?"
It happens all the time, and it catches more pilots off guard than you'd think. Not because they don't have commercial drone insurance, but because they don't know what the client actually needs or how to get it to them fast.
Here's what clients and companies really ask for when they hire a drone pilot, and what each item actually means.
A Certificate of Insurance (COI)
This is the most common request. A COI is a one-page summary of your coverage: the policy type, liability limits, effective dates, and the insurer's name. It proves you have active coverage without handing over your full policy documents.
Clients want this before any work begins. Some require it just to schedule the shoot. If you can't produce one quickly, you risk losing the job to another pilot who can.
With SkyWatch, you can pull a COI directly from the app within minutes. No waiting on hold, no emailing a broker, no days-long turnaround. You get the PDF, you forward it, and the job moves forward.
A Specific Liability Limit
Most clients have a minimum in mind. The most common request is $1 million per occurrence. Some commercial real estate firms, production companies, and municipalities ask for $2 million aggregate. Telecom and utility inspection clients can require as high as $10 million.
Before you accept any commercial job, it's worth asking what limit they need. Then confirm your policy covers it. A SkyWatch drone insurance policy can include up to $10 million in liability coverage, which covers the vast majority of client requirements you'll encounter in the field.
Additional Insured Status
This is the one that surprises pilots the most. Some clients don't just want proof of your insurance. They want to be added to your policy as an additional insured, meaning they're also protected if something goes wrong on the job.
It sounds complicated, but it's a standard request in commercial work. A general contractor, property owner, or event organizer might need this for their own liability protection, or because their own insurance requires it from any subcontractor they hire.
SkyWatch policies support additional insured endorsements. When a client asks for this, you can add them directly in the app. The updated COI showing their name gets generated immediately.
Waiver of Subrogation
This one tends to come up on larger commercial projects. A waiver of subrogation means that if your insurer pays a claim related to the job, they agree not to go after the client to recover those costs.
From the client's perspective, it's a way to keep a potential insurance dispute from turning into a legal one between companies. It's a reasonable ask, and having a policy that supports it puts you in a much stronger position when negotiating bigger contracts.
Why This Matters for Your Business
Commercial drone work is competitive. When two pilots have similar skills and rates, the one who can answer "yes" to every insurance question and send documentation in under five minutes wins the job. The one who says "let me check on that and get back to you" often doesn't.
Being prepared with the right coverage isn't just about protecting yourself if something goes wrong. It's part of how you present as a legitimate commercial operator. Clients at the higher end of the market expect it. They've worked with contractors before and they know what to ask for.
We built SkyWatch so you can handle all of this from your phone. Get a quote, activate coverage, pull a COI, add an additional insured, and get on with the job. Visit skywatch.ai to see what a policy looks like for your operation.
