Commercial general liability (CGL)

CGL is the core liability policy for a business. It pays what you legally owe other people, up to the limits, when your operations, premises or products hurt someone or damage their property, and it pays to defend the lawsuit. The ISO occurrence form, CG 00 01, has three coverages: A, bodily injury and property damage; B, personal and advertising injury; and C, medical payments regardless of fault. A claims-made version, CG 00 02, is used less often.

Limits are stated per occurrence and in aggregate, for example $1 million per occurrence / $2 million general aggregate, with a separate products-completed operations aggregate. Under the standard form, defense costs are paid in addition to the limits.

What a CGL leaves out matters as much as what it covers: injuries to your own employees (workers' compensation and employers' liability), your vehicles, professional services, most pollution, damage to your own work, and contract liability beyond an "insured contract." Leases and customer contracts often require a CGL plus an additional insured endorsement, so expect to be asked for a certificate.

Manuscript and carrier-specific forms vary, so read the exclusions before the coverage grant. general liability insurance: what it covers and what it does not explains the policy in full, Inside the CGL policy: Coverages A, B and C walks through each coverage, and occurrence policy explains the trigger.