Certificate of Currency · request email templateEasyStagecraft Module 4 · for lighting / sound / rigging / set / hire contractors · send + chase + escalate · with the "they refused" backstop
What a CoC is. A Certificate of Currency is one-page proof that the contractor's public liability insurance is current, with the policy number, sum insured, expiry date, and the named insured business. School boards require it; the school's own insurer requires it before they extend the school's policy to cover the visiting contractor. No CoC, no contractor on site. The right time to ask for it is when you receive the quote — not when they turn up Saturday morning.
Email 1 — initial request
[Production] — Certificate of Currency request before PO raise
Hi [Contractor first name],
Quote received and we're keen to proceed — thanks for the quick turnaround.
Before I raise the PO, the school's standard intake requires a current Certificate of Currency on file. Could you email me:
• Public liability — minimum cover A$20 million (or higher if your policy)
• Professional indemnity (if you carry it, useful but not always mandatory)
• Workers' compensation (for any of your team coming on site)
PDF straight from your broker / insurer's portal is ideal — the named insured entity should match the entity on your quote.
For our records the document needs to show:
• Insurer name
• Policy number
• Period of insurance (current as of bump-in start, [Date])
• Limit of liability
• Type of cover
Once received I'll lodge it with the school's business office and we're good to go — usually 24h turnaround on my end after I receive it.
Cheers,
[PM name]
Production Manager · [School name][Phone]
Email 2 — chase at 5 business days
Re: [Production] — Certificate of Currency reminder
Hi [Contractor first name],
Just a quick chase on the CoC — still need it before I can release the PO. Bump-in is in [X] working days and the school's business office needs [Y] days to log it on their end.
Could you grab it from your broker today? Most of them turn this around within an hour by email request.
If anything's holding it up at your end, give me a quick call and I'll see if we can work around it.
Cheers,
[PM name]
Email 3 — pre-bump-in escalation (3 business days out)
Hi [Contractor first name],
I'd hoped to avoid sending this one. The CoC is still outstanding and bump-in is [date] — three working days away.
The school's position (and mine, sorry) is firm: no current CoC on file means your crew can't access the venue on bump-in day. The school's insurer doesn't extend cover to a contractor it can't verify, and we can't put students near plant operated by an uninsured party.
What I need from you, today:
• Either the CoC PDF emailed to [admin email] + [PM email] by COB.
• Or a phone call to [PM phone] explaining what's going on so we can figure out a path forward together.
If neither happens by COB Wednesday, I'll need to engage [backup contractor name / put the rig in-house with the school's existing kit / postpone bump-in by a day]. That's not a threat — it's the only path I have open.
Hoping to hear from you within the hour.
[PM name][Mobile]
What to do if the contractor refuses or stalls
Position to hold: No CoC on file = contractor does not enter the venue. This is not negotiable, not "we'll figure it out on the day", not "they're reputable so we know it's fine". The school's insurer will void the school's policy if you waive this; the principal cannot legally sign off the production approval pack without it.
Escalation paths
Stage
Action
Day 5 — no response to first request
Send chase email + SMS + voicemail same day. Open log in the production folder.
Day 8 — still no CoC
Escalation email above. Copy principal + business manager.
Day 10 — refusal or evasion
Phone the contractor's office manager (not the rep you've been dealing with). Ask plainly: "Do you have current public liability for this booking?" Document the answer.
Day 11
If still no CoC: brief principal in writing, recommend swap to a backup contractor (always have a B-side identified before this stage), revise PO, notify the original contractor in writing that the booking is cancelled for lack of insurance evidence.
After
Add the original contractor to the school's "verify earlier next time" list. Don't blacklist on a single occurrence; sometimes brokers genuinely sit on requests.
If they produce a CoC at the eleventh hour
Check three things before accepting it:
Insured entity name matches the entity on the quote (ABN-level match if possible).
Period of insurance covers your bump-in date through bump-out + 30 days minimum (some insurers issue 30-day "currency" docs that lapse before your strike).
Limit of liability meets the school's threshold (typically A$20m PL for school-board approved contractors; some boards require A$50m).
If any of the three doesn't match, the CoC fails. Reply asking for a corrected version. Don't accept "it's basically the same" verbally.
What to log when you receive a valid CoC
Field
Where to put it
PDF of the CoC
Production folder · compliance/coc/[contractor]-CoC-[YYYY].pdf
Contractor name + ABN
Production approval pack · contractor register
Insurer + policy number + limit
Production approval pack
Period of insurance
Production approval pack · expiry diarised in your calendar