General Liability insurance is a type of insurance for businesses that protects them from a broad array of potential lawsuits. Claims involving General Liability insurance are third-party claims, which means they’re made by another person who says you or your company caused them harm.
Below is an explanation of what you need to know about General Liability insurance.
What’s Covered by General Liability Insurance?
There are three categories of coverage that are part of General Liability insurance: Bodily injury and property damage, personal and advertising injury, and medical payments. Here is a more detailed definition of each of these three types of liability coverage:
- Bodily injury and property damage: This is the category of coverage that is most often associated with General Liability insurance. Bodily injury protects you in situations where a customer or other person is hurt on your premises, or by your services or products. Property damage happens when you or someone involved with your company acts in a way that accidentally damages the value of third-party property.
- Personal and advertising injury: Personal injury sounds like it would mean bodily harm. But this isn’t actually the case. Personal injury includes things like false arrest and malicious prosecution. Advertising injury covers thing like copyright infringement and libel.
- Medical payments: While medical payments exist in the same universe as bodily injury, it’s actually a different classification. Unlike the other categories, medical payments covers third-party medical expenses whether or not you’re found responsible. This can make the third party less likely to pursue a lawsuit.
Examples of When You’d Want General Liability Insurance
There are many real-world examples of times when having General Liability insurance is in your best interest. In fact, having the right insurance can mean the difference weathering an incident and your business having to shut down.
These are a few examples of when General Liability insurance can come into play:
- A group comes in to have their family photos taken in your home photo studio. While getting into position, someone trips and falls over a cord on the ground. They end up breaking their arm. Without bodily injury and medical payments coverage, you could find yourself footing the bill.
- Your roofing company is doing work on a client’s home. One of your employees accidentally drops their nail gun, which falls off the roof and onto the windshield of the client’s car. Property damage coverage is the only thing that keeps you from having to pay for this damage out of pocket.
Who Can Benefit from Having General Liability Insurance?
Any business owner or contractor can benefit from having General Liability insurance. Think about it: Almost every line of work comes with risk that can be covered by this type of insurance. If you currently don’t have General Liability insurance, don’t delay looking into it. When faced with an accident, getting this coverage can be the difference between the success and failure of your business.
Plus, some clients will only hire you if you can produce a certificate of insurance upon request.
How Much Does It Cost to Get General Liability Insurance?
Getting General Liability insurance is typically very affordable. There are a few different options you can look at to determine what coverage is right for you. Companies such as Verifly offer General Liability insurance by the month, day, or even by the hour. This means you can get exactly the right amount for your organization.
General Liability insurance is an important component of running a successful business. Once you understand how it can impact your ability to thrive as a business owner, it’s obvious why you need to opt for this coverage.
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