New Mexico contractor insurance requirements

Workers' comp in New Mexico

New Mexico businesses with three or more workers must carry workers' comp. Contractors licensed under the Construction Industries Licensing Act need it regardless of headcount. The construction rule applies to out-of-state contractors working in New Mexico too.

The agency in charge is the New Mexico Workers' Compensation Administration. It can tell you whether a specific business needs coverage, and most states let you look up an employer's policy online.

Contractor licensing and insurance

We found no statewide general liability minimum tied to a general contractor license. Cities and counties can set their own licensing and insurance rules, so check where the project is.

Indemnity and additional insured clauses

New Mexico's anti-indemnity statute (N.M. Stat. Ann. §§ 56-7-1, 56-7-2) voids construction contract clauses that make a contractor indemnify another party for that party's own negligence, even in part. Clauses limited to the contractor's own share of fault generally hold up. The statute also reaches insurance: a contract can't use an additional insured requirement to get coverage for the other party's negligence that the indemnity rule forbids.

What to check on a contractor COI for a New Mexico project

1. Workers' comp. A contractor below New Mexico's threshold can legally go without it, but your project requirements can still require it. Decide what you'll accept, and get an exemption or a policy in writing. For an out-of-state contractor, confirm New Mexico is listed on the workers' comp policy.
2. General liability. New Mexico doesn't set a statewide floor for a general contractor license, so your project requirements set the bar. Compare each limit on the COI with what the contract asks for.
3. Additional insured. In New Mexico, the anti-indemnity statute also limits what an additional insured requirement can do. Ask your broker or attorney which wording holds up, then check that the endorsement on file matches it.
4. Dates. Every policy should run through the end of the job. A COI only shows coverage on the day it was issued, so check again at each renewal.

Forsured checks every contractor COI against your project requirements, then keeps checking for the life of the project. Send us one project's requirements and a contractor COI or two for a free COI risk check.