Commercial General Liability protects your business in case of a law suite. The insurance information institute defines general liability as “a broad commercial policy that covers all liability exposures of a business that are not specifically excluded. Coverage includes product liability, completed operations, premises and operations, and independent contractors”.
What does all that mean? That means if you get suied in the course of doing business, you need a commercial general liability policy to keep you from paying damages out of your pocket. In fact general liability insurance not only protects you against having to pay money for damages, but it also includes the expense of hiring attorneys, building your case, and even time in court.
As previously mentioned, the typical general liability insurance policy includes the following liability coverages:
Products Liability is the area of law in which manufacturers, distributors, suppliers, retailers, and others who make products available to the public are held responsible for the injuries those products cause. Therefore, if you make a widget but because of a defect, it injures someone down the road, your business could be suied for the injuries caused by your widget. As a result, product liability is included in most general liability policies to protect against lawsuits of this nature.
Completed Operations Liability insurance provides coverage for bodily injury and property damage rising from completed or abandoned operations, provided the incident occurs away from premises owned or rented by the insured. This coverage is similar to products liability coverage. As a result, many companies group Products Liability and Completed Operations Liability into one coverage.
Premises and operations Liability is the part of the general liability policy that covers an insured for bodily injury or property damage liability to members of the public while they are on his premises. That means if someone comes into your office and falls and breaks a leg, you could be deemed liable or at fault. Therefore, this coverage was added to the General Liability policy to protect business owners against lawsuits and claims of this nature.
As with most insurance policies, the commercial general liability insurance policies does not cover everything a business owner could be suied for. Depending upon the type of business you run, each policy contains a set of exclusions. Therefore it is always best to consult a business insurance expert.
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