Commercial general liability insurance is a necessary insurance coverage for business owners across a range of industries. Whether you work in manufacturing, retail, contracting, real estate, restaurant, or a home-based business, commercial general liability insurance is needed to keep your business and your future safe.
A commercial general liability insurance policy is designed to protect you and your business in the event of a lawsuit brought forth against your company or an individual in your company. General liability insurance for commercial businesses can be used in situations where a third-party experiences injury, or there has been damage to property as a result of your day to day business operations.
Commercial general liability insurance is highly beneficial for businesses, as it allows for financial support during potentially challenging times.
What is Commercial General Liability Insurance?
Commercial general liability insurance, or CGL insurance, is a policy that can help with defense costs and other costs associated with a lawsuit made against your company. Any business can get into a situation where someone is injured because of a product or on the property where work is occurring. A business may need help covering the costs of lost wages, medical expenses, property damage, and the legal fees associated with going to court and making a settlement with an injured party.
The money from this insurance policy, should it be needed, is used to defend a claim made against your business in court. This is a required insurance policy to have as a business owner in Canada. Although the standard policy includes $1 million in coverage, insurance experts recommend a CGL policy of $2 million or more (depending on your operation).
Each company will need to assess how much they want their insurance policy to cover, as it depends on the line of work you are in. An insurance expert can help you evaluate your company’s risk and come to an informed decision about your coverage limits.
What Does Commercial General Liability Insurance Cover?
A CGL insurance policy can help cover legal fees and other costs associated with bodily injury or property damage. The injury or harm has to be found to be the responsibility of the business in question. If someone is injured on your property and sues, this policy would help pay for a settlement if the court rules in their favor. In short, a CGL policy helps cover:
- Bodily injury
- Medical bills
- Property damage
- Legal fees
As no two companies carry the same level of risk, the liability limits for a CGL policy will vary. Someone who runs their business from home may have a much different level of exposure than someone who owns and operates a warehouse full of machinery. An insurance expert can assess a company’s risk to see what an appropriate level of coverage would be.
This is a highly specific kind of insurance policy; no two companies are alike, so no two policies will be the same, either. A CGL policy will be built to fit a company’s unique needs and will be tailored to cover the level of liability each business can expect to assume. Policy premiums will depend on the coverage limit, term limits, and other factors agreed upon in the CGL policy.
CGL Details
The strongest difference between personal general liability coverage and commercial general liability coverage is that personal liability policies come with a predetermined set of coverages, whereas commercial liability does not. Commercial general liability is customized to each company, and extra coverages can be included.
These extras can include:
- Property insurance
- Fire insurance
- Earthquake insurance
- Commercial auto insurance
- Products and Completed Operations
- Equipment Breakdown
- And more.
All CGL policies will have an occurrence limit. This occurrence limit is the maximum amount an insurance policy will pay out per incident or claim that is made. Some policies may also carry an aggregate limit. This aggregate limit is the maximum amount an insurance policy will pay out over the policy’s contract term.
To learn more about commercial general liability insurance and some of our insurance partners that offer this coverage, contact us at 1-855-385-4226 or [email protected]. Our licensed professionals will be happy to answer any questions you have.
