Insurance Insights

General liability insurance, also referred to as commercial general liability insurance, is one of the most common types of small business insurance. General liability insurance provides broad coverage for the small business owner and is a foundation for small business insurance. Learning about essential key terms and coverage limits of general liability insurance policies will help the small business owner when it comes time to purchase his commercial insurance policy.
Each Occurrence. A business liability each occurrence policy typically has an “each occurrence” limit, which is typically one million dollars — but can range anywhere from $100,000 to two million dollars. Property damage and bodily injury are covered in this type of policy limit.
General Aggregate. A business liability general aggregate policy is normally twice the limit of a business liability limit. A business liability general aggregate refers to the maximum payment that an insurance company will distribute during the policy period.
Personal/Advertising Injury. Typically, the limit on personal and advertising injury is the same as the limit on the business liability each occurrence limit. Coverage includes personal injury, but doesn’t include property damage or bodily injury. However, slander claims, false advertising and unintentional liable are included.
Products Completed Operations Aggregate. Like business liability general aggregate, the aggregate limit is typically twice the limit of the business liability each occurrence limit.
Medical Payments. This protection covers medical bills incurred by third parties who may become hurt or injured on your property — even if you’re not liable. The coverage limit varies, but is typically $10,000. This coverage is only for third party claims that happened while on your premises — the coverage doesn’t apply to the small business owner or his employees. In most cases, you have one year to request medical payment coverage for a claim that happened on your premises.
Damage to Premises Rented by You. This is another limit of liability prescribed by the standard business general liability policy. This coverage limit includes fire damage on premises you rent. The limits on this coverage vary, but may range from $100,000 to $300,000. Your own property is not included in this coverage.

Commercial General Liability Insurance protects a small business in the case of litigation for property damages or personal injury. Typically, commercial general liability covers damages from a lawsuit in addition to associated legal costs. Because today’s nation is progressively litigious where even small mishaps can result in large lawsuits, it behooves small business owners to be covered with commercial general liability insurance.
Who Needs Commercial General Liability Coverage?

While business owners are likely aware of how important it is to keep their clients and employees alike safe, some accidents or incidents may be unavoidable. When these happen and someone is seriously injured or if the event is fatal, having ample liability insurance is crucial for small businesses.

Many news reports state that travel accidents make up the majority of claims made by small businesses. While purchasing the right amount of commercial insurance including liability coverage can prevent these from causing your business to close its doors, there are some other basics that traveling employees should keep in mind to minimize additional costs for employers.

Purchasing a minimum amount of liability insurance for businesses can be a mistake in itself for business owners, but there are other common errors made when investing in this type of coverage.

There are a number of perks that come with offering food to your employees. However, if a worker comes in contact with a certain food item they are allergic to and has a reaction, you may need to utilize your liability insurance.

A new proposal to raise minimum wage by 2015 may have large businesses concerned with their ability to increase employee pay, but small business owners are reportedly more open to the change.

Small retail businesses might have a need for more liability insurance in the near future, as more customers could frequent these stores with consumer sentiment surging in May.

With small businesses hiring more people in April, there could be an increased need for liability insurance.

With consumer confidence on the rise, and home prices increasing, consumers might be more willing to spend money in the near future. As retailers begin to see more customers it might be a good idea to re-visit liability insurance policies, as one customer injury could lead to a lawsuit significant enough to cancel out the benefit of higher sales.