What is primary and noncontributory wording?

Primary and noncontributory is an endorsement wording that makes the named insured's policy respond first (primary) to a claim involving the additional insured, and prevents the carrier from seeking contribution from the additional insured's own insurance (noncontributory). Without this wording, the additional insured's carrier and the named insured's carrier may dispute which policy pays first or try to share the loss on a pro-rata or equal-shares basis. Turf vendors and tower owners require it so that their own insurance is never triggered by a subcontractor's work. The subcontractor's policy pays everything up to its limits before the additional insured's coverage is even considered. This is achieved through ISO endorsement CG 20 01 or equivalent proprietary language. The endorsement modifies the other insurance condition in the GL policy, which normally makes the policy excess over other available insurance for the same claim. With primary and noncontributory wording, the normal other-insurance provision is overridden for the benefit of the additional insured. Most specialty tower programs include this as standard. If your policy does not include it, the endorsement can usually be added for nominal or no additional premium, as it does not increase the carrier's aggregate exposure.