The construction chain is a thicket of liability questions: the client contracts with the main contractor, part of the work is carried out by subcontractors – and when damage occurs, the question travels both down and up the chain: who made the mistake, who is liable, whose insurer pays? This article sorts out the chain logic, with examples from Fecó's world.
Two layers need to be kept apart. The liability layer: who is liable to the injured party – this is settled by the contracts and the applicable laws; toward the client, it is typically the main contractor who answers, and who can then turn to the subcontractor at fault. The insurance layer: which party's contract covers the specific loss – the main contractor's cover can extend to subcontractors' work (typically as an extension), and the subcontractor may also need – and have – its own cover. Aligning the two layers is the essence of chain planning: a gap arises exactly where liability exists but no cover stands behind it.
The main contractor works with two tools. The first is its own contract: whether a subcontractor extension exists and on what terms – without it, a claim arising from a subcontractor's error can land on the main contractor with no cover behind it (extensions). The second is the subcontractors' certified own cover: the limit, type and validity shown on the certificate you request – the subcontractor-chain checklist turns requesting this into a routine. The two are not either-or: your own extension is the safety net, the subcontractor's cover is the first line.
For a subcontractor, insurance is now an entry condition to the market: main contractors ask for a certificate, sometimes with a required limit (client requirements) – and since 15 January 2025, the law has also required subcontractors listed in the register of building contractors to hold compulsory contractor's liability insurance (Government Decree 191/2009, Section 21/B). Your own interest points the same way: recourse from the party above you in the chain – when the main contractor claims back a paid loss from the subcontractor – is exactly the situation your own cover is for. On staying certificate-ready: article.
Three recurring gaps: a verbal subcontractor agreement – when a loss occurs, the liability questions are unresolved; expired or narrow subcontractor cover – the certificate was requested once, years ago; and players outside the chain – the helper who steps in, the operator of a borrowed machine, whom nobody's cover was thinking of. All three can be closed with paperwork and routine. At the scale of a construction project, the question runs deeper still – that is where the world of project insurance opens up: construction project article. To have your own chain reviewed: free consultation.
At a residential building renovation, the tiling subcontractor's error causes two flats to flood. The injured parties turn to the main contractor – rightly so, since it is the main contractor who is under contract with the building. From here, two stories are possible. In an unmanaged chain: the main contractor points to the tiler, the tiler denies it, there is no paperwork, and the injured parties wait for months – everyone loses. In a well-managed chain: the main contractor reports the case to its own insurer (it has a subcontractor extension), claims handling begins, the injured parties see an orderly process – and the settlement between the main contractor and the tiler runs, in the background, along the lines of the requested certificate and the written contract. Same loss – the difference is how prepared the chain was.
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