Liability insurance for the everyday risks of running a business.
Coverage for certain claims involving customer injuries, third-party property damage and other liability risks.
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WHAT IT DOES
CGL helps with certain claims made by people outside your business.
Most commercial policies start here. CGL deals with harm your business may cause to a customer, a visitor or a neighbouring property.
01
A customer or visitor is injured at your premises
02
Your work accidentally damages someone else’s property
03
A completed operation later causes third-party damage
04
Your business is named in a liability lawsuit
A CGL policy may respond in each case, subject to the policy wording, limits, exclusions and conditions.
WHAT IT MAY COVER
Common areas of coverage.
Bodily Injury
Claims alleging that a third party was physically injured in connection with your premises or operations.
Third-Party Property Damage
Claims alleging that your operations damaged property belonging to someone else.
Products and Completed Operations
Claims arising after a job is finished or a product has left your hands, where the alleged damage appears later.
Legal Defence Costs
The cost of defending a covered claim, which can be significant even where the claim is ultimately unsuccessful.
Tenant’s Legal Liability
Where applicable, damage to premises you lease — commonly required by a commercial landlord.
Personal and Advertising Injury
Where the policy includes it, allegations such as defamation or certain advertising-related claims.
Availability and wording vary by insurer. A broker can confirm what a specific policy includes before you bind.
WHAT IT DOESN’T REPLACE
CGL is important, but it is not every kind of liability insurance.
A CGL policy is deliberately narrow. Built around third-party bodily injury and property damage, it generally leaves other common risks to separate coverage.
Claims about professional advice, design or service that is alleged to be wrong or inadequate.
Data breaches, ransomware, and the response and liability costs that follow them.
Vehicles owned, leased or used by the business, including employees driving on company business.
Damage to your own building, equipment, stock and contents.
Directors and Officers
Claims against individual directors and officers relating to how the organisation is run.
Employer and Workplace Obligations
Injuries to your own employees, which in Ontario generally fall under a separate statutory scheme.
General distinctions only, not a statement of what a particular policy does. A broker can review the wording with you.
WHO COMMONLY NEEDS IT
The operations that most often carry a CGL policy.
CGL sits underneath most commercial programs. These are the HIFA industry pages where it comes up first.
NOT SURE WHERE YOU FIT?
A broker can look at your operation, not the category.
Tell us what you do and how you work. A commercial broker can review the risk and the wording with you before you approach the market.
Want to talk now?
REAL CLAIM EXAMPLES
Two situations worth thinking through in advance.
Customer Injury
A customer slips on a wet floor near the entrance and alleges that the business was responsible for the resulting injury.
A CGL policy may respond to covered third-party bodily-injury claims and to the cost of defending them, subject to the limits, exclusions and conditions in the policy.
Property Damage
Work performed at a client’s site accidentally damages finished flooring in an adjacent area.
A CGL policy may respond to certain third-party property-damage claims. Whether it does depends on how the damage occurred, what the policy excludes, and the wording that applies to your operations.
Illustrative example
Illustrative only. These are not statements of coverage. Every claim is assessed on its own facts against the policy in force.
WHAT AFFECTS THE PRICE
Two similar businesses can price very differently.
THE OPERATION
Industry / business classification
Nature of operations
Customer traffic and public access
Subcontractor exposure
U.S. or international exposure
THE NUMBERS
Annual revenue
Payroll
Requested limits
Deductibles
Claims history
A broker can tell you which of these is actually driving your number before you approach the market.
WHAT WE’LL ASK YOU
The questions that change the policy.
01
What does your business actually do?
02
Where is the work performed?
03
Who are your customers, and what third parties interact with your operation?
04
Do you use subcontractors?
05
What liability limits do your contracts or landlords require?
06
Have there been liability claims or incidents in the last five years?
Common questions
What owners ask about CGL.
Is CGL required by law?
Does CGL cover my professional mistakes?
What if the claim is frivolous?
Are subcontractors covered under my CGL?
What is an 'Additional Insured'?
Does CGL cover damage to the property I am working on?
READY TO TALK?
Let’s make sure the liability coverage matches the business.
Tell us what you do, where you operate and what your contracts require. A commercial broker can review the risk before approaching insurers.
Want to talk now?