How Smart COIs Can Revolutionize Insurance
A Smart COI replaces the static, paper-based certificate of insurance with a live, data-connected record that updates in real time when a vendor's underlying policy changes, eliminating the manual re-checking that defines current COI workflows. Traditional certificates are shared as PDFs or email attachments and become outdated the moment a policy is cancelled, a limit is reduced, or an endorsement is dropped, which forces requestors into constant verification cycles to confirm coverage is still valid. In a 2022 article in Insurance Thought Leadership, an Institutes-affiliated publication, Certificial describes how Smart COIs reduce risk, ensure compliance, and lower cost. Last updated: May 2026
While commercial insurance is still a very paper-based industry, the issuance and tracking of certificates of insurance (COI) is ripe for innovation. A COI is a document that provides proof of a business's insurance coverage and can be shared with clients and vendors.
COIs are often shared as paper documents or email attachments, which means they can quickly become outdated. They must be checked, re-checked and verified constantly to make sure the information is still valid. This is a time-consuming and inefficient process.
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