In case your business faces any untoward incident where someone is injured, while working within the premises; or a part of your property has been damaged, a commercial general liability insurance covers the medical expenses, or the cost of repairing the premises. Most of the insurance companies offer a package, where property insurance along with the commercial type is offered so that your business is protected. Moreover, there may be times when you may face fraudulent, or real claims of wrongdoings or negligence, and this is where this type of policy can play an important part in saving you from making a dent in your pocket.
Coverage
A general liability business insurance, along with the commercial one, can be considered the most basic type of business insurance, which every business owner should get. There are four basic categories, which it covers: bodily injury, property damage, advertising injury, and personal injury. Moreover, it also helps you in not incurring too much financial burden, if a litigation is filed against you.
Depending on your choices and needs, you can choose one, or all the sections, which help in covering you against losses. These sections include automatic additional insured, personal and advertising injury, employment practices liability, defense costs, medical expenses, and premises and operations liability. In an automatic and additional insurance, whenever you have a written agreement, permit, or contract with another party, coverage is automatically provided. A personal and advertising injury provides a cover against some specific offenses, which you may intentionally or unintentionally commit, like copyright violation, disparagement, and slander in your advertisements.
In case there is any lawsuit filed by any employee for a specific employment-related issue, you can take the advantage of employment practice liability, which covers against the expenses, which you will incur to fight such lawsuits. In case someone is injured in the course of employment, due to an accident within your premises, medical expenses pay for the person’s medical bills. A premises and operations liability covers property damage and bodily injury, which may be suffered by others due to the operation of your business.
Quote
Finding the best coverage can be a tedious process. You can go online and search for what different insurance companies have on offer. Get quotes from different service providers so that you can compare the amount of premiums, which you will need to pay; and the kind of coverage you can get. There are several websites, which offer free services, where you can receive multiple quotes from different service providers.
Cost
The cost varies depending on a number of factors. The first and most important factor is the size of your business. If you have a large business, and the space of your premises is huge, you will need to pay a higher premium. On the other hand, if it is small, you will need to pay small amounts in premium. Moreover, different states have different laws, regarding the amount of compensation you may have to pay to an employee or to a plaintiff. In case your business is in a state, where high damage amounts are awarded, you will need to pay higher amounts as premiums, compared to those states, where damage amounts are lower.
The potential of your business to injure someone is also taken into consideration, while determining its cost. For example, if you manufacture wood chipper, you may need to pay higher premiums, as there is a higher chance of being sued for injury or damage, compared to a business, which makes picture frames.
Thus, commercial general liability insurance gives you a great opportunity to protect your business from unforeseen circumstances. However, before going for it, measure the pros and cons of getting one. Moreover, read the terms and conditions, and see if that’s the best deal you have found.
