Business owners open claims every day for events that they never saw coming. When they purchased general liability insurance, they never envisioned using it for the things they do.
This is why general liability insurance is the go-to for any business; coverage is often wide-ranging, acting as a safety net for your business in a variety of situations.
Strange Circumstances
No two lawsuits are exactly the same. If you run a retail space, you might think third-party injury episodes are pretty cut and dry. Someone slips and falls, they sue, your insurance covers it, the end.
The truth is, a lot of claims can be more nuanced than that. Say you sell jewelry, and a customer perusing the selection pricks their finger on the back of an earring or brooch. It’s a small wound, but it becomes badly infected, and they want you to pay for the medical treatment they required. Whether or not you’re actually responsible is up to the courts, but general liability is intended to cover injuries sustained by a third party.
This includes services rendered as part of your business outside of a commercial space. For example, imagine you’re delivering a piece of furniture or décor to an owner’s home. As you carry it in, your grip momentarily slips and a corner falls on the homeowner’s foot, injuring them.
General liability also protects you from lawsuits lodged by your competitors. You distributed a flier explaining why you were the best choice in the area, but a competitor feels targeted by your language. If they sue you successfully, general liability can cover this, provided it’s determined that you didn’t overtly lie or intend to do them damage.
What It Doesn’t Cover
As we can see, there are all sorts of odd occasions on which general liability of Next Insurance can be helpful. Still, you should know what general liability insurance typically doesn’t cover. This is why many businesses have multiple policies in place.
- Damage to a customer’s property. If you keep customer items in your care for alteration or repair, mistakes might happen. But general liability doesn’t cover damage to their property while you’re responsible for it.
- Employee injury. You’ll still need the policy to cover worker’s compensation. General liability won’t usually pay up for a worker that gets injured on the job.
- A car accident. Even if it’s officially your business vehicle, you need auto insurance for any vehicle accident or damage claims.
- Other mistakes. So, you ordered a hundred t-shirts with a custom design on them, only to find that the manufacturer misprinted them. You might want to see how you can unload them at cost because general liability doesn’t cover this.
- Other types of damage. If you or an employee knowingly damage or vandalize your property, including merchandise, this probably isn’t covered.
No matter how many policies you need, it all begins with general liability insurance. Over the years, you’ll find that it can save your business from a multitude of unforeseen debacles.
From unusual third-party claims to perceived slights at the competition, general liability has got you covered.
