B2Z's General Liability Insurance is designed for your small business! General liability insurance coverage is essential and often required by leasing agreements and other contracts. B2Z makes it easy by customizing your coverage for your unique business. Commercial general liability insurance provides coverage for injuries and damage your business causes to a third party. Learn more below!
B2Z Offers General Liability Insurance
What is General Liability Insurance?
General liability insurance for a small business typically covers claims concerning third parties. This means that if your business causes an injury to another person or damage to another property or business then the resulting claims would be covered depending on the coverage you choose.
Common general liability claims include bodily injury and property damage caused by a business, and advertising injury impacting someone’s reputation. A general liability insurance policy does not cover injury to your own employees or damage to your own business’s property. For that kind of coverage, you will want to obtain a business owner’s policy instead.
Why Do I Need General Liability Insurance For My Small Business?
General liability insurance is essential for your small business if you:
- Lease or own a commercial space
- Work on a client’s property
- Interact with clients, customers, or the public
You need comprehensive general liability insurance to protect your small business. If your small business leases or rents property or has a mortgage, then commercial general liability insurance may be a contractual condition, and client contracts often require liability coverage.
Consider these scenarios…
A fire starts in your office break room and spreads to the business next door. A general liability policy would cover the costly damage to the other business and the cost of any resulting lawsuits.
Your client slips in your entryway on a rainy day, breaking their arm and requiring surgery. A general liability policy would help cover their medical costs. Slip and fall accidents are a common claim!
You are sued for copyright infringement after you publish an advertising campaign for your business. A general liability policy typically includes coverage for costs associated with advertising lawsuits.
We could talk about General Liability Insurance all day…
We really want you to understand your General Liability Insurance coverage. Think of general liability as your front line of protection for your small business. Unexpected incidents like lawsuits can go beyond causing a headache—your whole business could be at risk. So, what exactly is covered?
General Liability Insurance Typically Covers:
- Third-party bodily injury, property damage, and personal and advertising injury
- Medical payments coverage regardless of fault
- Defense against any lawsuit seeking liability damages
- All court costs
- Most additional expenses
- Most interest expenses
This seems almost too good to be true, right? There must be a catch... And, here’s a sampling of what’s not covered:
General Liability Coverage Typically Excludes:
- Expected or intended injury
- Aircraft, auto, or watercraft
- Liquor liability
- Workers’ compensation
- Damage to your own property
- Employer’s liability
- War, nuclear event, or insurrection
- Criminal acts
- Electronic data
- Pollution
General Liability Insurance Frequently Asked Questions
Q.
How does a general liability policy work?
A.
In a nutshell: You pay premiums (on behalf of your small business) and in exchange, the insurance company agrees to pay for losses and associated expenses that are covered by the policy. Your policy documents are the legal contract between your small business and the insurance company.
Q.
Do I need a Business Owner's Policy if I have a General Liability policy?
A.
A Business Owner's Policy (BOP) combines general liability coverage and property damage coverage into one policy. You may want a BOP instead of separate general liability coverage, and you would not have both policies at once. General liability does not cover damage to your business property, including equipment, for example. You would need a BOP for that. And you might only need general liability coverage if you aren’t concerned about damage to your own property.
Try our B2Z Coverage Tune-Up if you’re not sure what coverage type you need.
Q.
What does a general liability policy typically cover?
A.
A general liability policy typically pays for physical loss to buildings and business personal property caused by your business as long as the cause of loss is not specifically excluded (such as by war, nuclear hazard, flood, fungi, virus or bacteria, just to name a few). Liability claims it may cover include third-party bodily injury, property damage, and personal and advertising injury—and associated medical payments are covered, regardless of fault.
Q.
What doesn’t a general liability insurance policy typically cover?
A.
Like any type of insurance policy, a general liability insurance policy excludes certain causes of loss and does not provide coverage for risks outside the scope of the policy. For example, aircraft, commercial autos, contraband, steam boilers, and watercraft are not covered under a general liability policy, nor are losses caused by flood, pollution, nuclear hazard, or war. Other exposures and risks are specifically excluded by general liability policies; however, some can be covered by adding endorsements or by buying other additional insurance policies.
Q.
Is general liability insurance required by law?
A.
General liability policies are not required by law, but are often required by property leases and business contracts.
Q.
What is the difference between General Liability Insurance and a Business Owner's Policy?
A.
To put it simply, general liability insurance offers the liability coverage of a business owner's policy (BOP), but it excludes the building/business personal property coverage that is also included in a BOP.
What does that mean for your small business?
If you have business property like an office or warehouse to cover or expensive business personal property like heavy equipment, then you will want to consider a BOP, so you don't find yourself underinsured and at risk. But if you don't have expensive equipment and property to cover, a general liability policy might be more appropriate for you. Many home-based businesses, for example, choose general liability.
Here's some more help!
- Try our Coverage Tune-Up Quiz if you're not sure if you need a general liability policy or a BOP.
- Talk to our licensed customer experience team members, and they can help you out!
- Read this helpful article about General Liability versus a BOP.
Q.
What is the difference between General Liability Insurance and Professional Liability Insurance?
A.
General Liability Insurance provides different coverage for a small business than Professional Liability Insurance, and you may not need both.
General Liability policies are the most common small business insurance policy. General Liability covers most claims concerning third parties like a customer slip and fall, and your small business may be required to show proof of its coverage in the terms of a lease or client contract.
A Professional Liability policy (also called errors & omissions coverage), by contrast, covers work mistakes, missed deadlines, slander and libel, and inaccurate advice. Professional Liability Insurance is typically sought as a coverage for businesses that provide expertise like architects, attorneys, and bookkeepers.
Need some more help?
- Try our Coverage Tune-Up Quiz if you're not sure whether you need both policies.
- Talk to our licensed customer experience team members and they can help you out!
- Read this helpful article all about General Liability versus Professional Liability
Did you know?
B2Z is your one-stop-shop for insurance! Need additional coverage? We may have a solution. B2Z is here to discuss your General Liability Insurance needs and more. Contact Us—we'd love to help.