Commercial General Liability

Charles Goodman Group: Trusted Insurance in Bedford

Commercial general liability insurance protects businesses from liability that comes as a result of someone associated with their business acting in an unprofessional way. These actions would constitute a violation of the interest of a private citizen, their property, or another business. Claims may be filed if as a result of these nonprofessional acts someone is injured, property is damaged, or someone loses their life. Commercial general liability insurance provides protection from liability for the business owner for incidents that take place on the insured individual’s property or while they are carrying out business. Speaking to a Bedford insurance agent is a great way to get a thorough understanding of what commercial general liability insurance is and what it protects against.

In order for a claim to be filed, evidence must be presented that the individual who acted in a nonprofessional way that led to someone being injured or property being damaged did so as a result of negligence. There are four criteria used to determine negligence. First, the insured must be legally required to perform an action or not perform an action that could have prevented the damage from occurring. Second, it must be proven that the insured breached their duty to act or not to act. Third, the action or lack of action of the insured must be directly linked to the injury.

A trusted Bedford insurance agent from the Charles Goodman Group can assist you with any questions regarding property insurance or health insurance.

Fourth, there has to be actual damage done as a result of the negligence.

CGL covers bodily injury, property damage, personal advertising injury and payments for medical expenses. Property damage coverage would cover the legal liability of the insured from damages to property or to people because the insured acted in a negligent way while they were carrying out business on property they owned. The physical injury to an individual or to property has to be something that is tangible and something that resulted in the individual or the property having diminished use.

Bodily injury would include any injuries, sicknesses, or diseases that an individual sustains because of negligence on the part of the insured. If an individual dies sometime in the future as a result of an injury that occurred while the property or business was covered by the CGL coverage, those injuries would be paid for even if the policy is no longer in effect.

There is some debate about what the term bodily injury means. Some courts have ruled that bodily injury includes mental and emotional distress and that claims can be filed even if there was no physical damage to the body.

Insurance claims that stem from negligence in a commercial setting can result in hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of dollars in damages being paid out. For this reason, in addition to having sufficient insurance, it is important for businesses to have a comprehensive risk management strategy in place.