Commercial general liability (CGL) insurance—also known as general liability insurance (GLI) or business liability insurance—helps protect your business from claims of bodily injury and property damage.

What Does Commercial General Liability Insurance Cover?

Commercial general liability insurance helps cover your costs to respond to a claim that your business caused property damage or bodily injury. It can help pay for:

• A customer or client’s medical expenses if they slip and fall in your business.

• Reputational harm resulting from malicious prosecution, slander, libel, wrongful eviction, or violating a person’s privacy.

• Advertising injuries, such as copyright infringement from your business’ advertisements or social media activity, or trademark infringement when marketing your business’ products or services.

• False arrest or imprisonment if your business wrongfully detains a person suspected of shoplifting, for example.

• Medical costs if your customer or client hurts themselves while visiting your business.

• Damage to rented property caused by a covered loss such as fire, lightning, or explosion.

• Repair costs to fix a wall that your employee accidentally damaged while working at a customer’s home or bodily injuries to a child caused by a harmful substance your employee did not properly dispose of.

• Legal costs to defend your business in a lawsuit.

• Judgments and settlements from a customer or client’s lawsuit.

In California, Commercial General Liability (CGL) insurance is designed to protect businesses from a wide range of potential liability exposures. This type of insurance typically covers the costs associated with bodily injury and property damage claims that arise from the business's operations, products, or on its premises. CGL policies in California may cover medical expenses for a customer injured on the business property, reputational harm, advertising injuries, false arrest, and damages to rented property. Additionally, CGL insurance can cover legal defense costs, including attorney fees, court costs, and any settlements or judgments. The specific coverage details and policy limits can vary based on the insurance provider and the policy chosen by the business. It's important for businesses to review their policies carefully and consult with an attorney to ensure that their coverage meets their specific needs and complies with any applicable California regulations.