Commercial General Liability and Business Owner’s Insurance Policies

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What is Commercial General Liability?

Commercial general liability, or CGL, is considered comprehensive business insurance though it does not cover all risks a business may face.

CGL is exclusively general liability insurance for your business and covers non-professional negligent acts such as bodily injury, personal injury, property damage, and advertising injury caused by your business’ operations, products or employees.  It also includes injuries that occur on the business’ property. It does not include property insurance, but that can be added with a separate policy

What Could CGL Include?

Bodily Injury and Property Damage Liability: Liability arising out of negligent acts or arising out of premises or business operations. (Workers comp and employment practices liability are not included, but can be purchased as separate policies).

Personal and Advertising Injury: Arising out of offenses such as libel, slander, false arrest, copyright infringement, malicious prosecution, use of another’s advertising idea, wrongful eviction, entry, or invasion of privacy.

Medical Payments: Limited coverage for medical payments includes payments for injuries sustained by a non-employee caused by an accident that takes place on the insured’s premises or when exposed to the insured’s business operations. Medical payments coverage can be triggered without legal action.

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What Is a Business Owner’s Policy?

A business owner’s policy, or BOP, combines business property and business liability insurance into one convenient policy. BOP Insurance helps cover your business from claims resulting from things like fire, theft, or another covered disaster, as well as from claims involving bodily injury, property damage, and personal and advertising injury that could arise from your business’ operations.

You need a BOP if:

  • Your business has a physical location, either your home or a rented or owned office
  • There exists a possibility of being sued — for example, by a customer who was injured at your workplace
  • You have assets, digital or physical, that can be stolen or damaged. This can include customer data, equipment, furniture, inventory, or cash.

What Do BOPs Include?

Property insurance for buildings and contents owned by the company: A BOP covers your property as well as any business-owned items or items owned by a third party but kept temporarily in the care, custody or control of the business or business owner. (There are two different forms, standard and special, which provides more comprehensive coverage.)

Business interruption insurance: Covers the loss of income resulting from a fire or other catastrophe that disrupts the operation of the business. It can also include the extra expense of operating out of a temporary location.

Liability protection: This covers your company’s legal responsibility for the harm it may cause to others. This harm is a result of things that you and your employees do or fail to do in your business operations that may cause bodily injury or property damage due to defective products, faulty installations, and errors in services provided.

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What Doesn’t a BOP Include?

BOPs typically do not include the following:

  • Professional liability
  • Auto insurance
  • Worker’s compensation
  • Health and disability insurance
  • Professional services
  • Vehicles
  • Employees
  • Crime insurance
  • Flood insurance
  • Spoilage of merchandise
  • Computer equipment
  • Mechanical breakdown
  • Forgery and fidelity bond
  • Cyber liability/data compromise

The above-mentioned items would require separate policies. Some may be made available by endorsement.

CGL and BOP Policies Protect Your Business

Protect your business from catastrophes, unforeseen accidents, negligent acts, and more. When it comes to potentially expensive mistakes, you’re better safe than sorry! Ask us about our CGL and BOP policies today.

Commercial General Liability FAQs

Commercial General Liability (CGL) helps protect your business if you’re accused of non-professional negligence that causes third-party bodily injury, property damage, or personal/advertising injury arising from your operations, products, or employees (including injuries on your premises).

CGL commonly includes:

  • Bodily injury & property damage liability (premises/operations)

  • Personal & advertising injury (e.g., libel/slander, certain copyright-related advertising claims)

  • Medical payments (limited no-fault medical coverage for a non-employee injured on your premises/operations)

General liability usually does not cover:

  • Employee injuries (typically workers’ comp)

  • Commercial auto accidents (commercial auto / hired & non-owned)

  • Damage to your own business property (commercial property)

  • Professional mistakes / advice (professional liability / E&O)

In most cases, it’s not a Massachusetts legal requirement the way certain auto or workers’ comp rules are—but leases, client contracts, and project requirements often require proof of GL. Massachusetts contractor guidance for certain programs also expects contractors to maintain general liability coverage.

A very common starting point is $1 million per occurrence / $2 million aggregate, because it often satisfies landlord and contract requirements. The “right” limit depends on your risk (foot traffic, job sites, subcontractors, contracts, etc.)

CGL is liability-only. A BOP bundles liability + property into one policy—typically combining business property, business interruption, and liability protection in a single package.

Often, yes—especially if you have equipment, inventory, customer data, or any chance of a customer/vendor claim. Banas notes a BOP can make sense if you have a physical location (including home), and assets that could be stolen or damaged.

This coverage helps with liability claims that happen after your work is finished or your product is in use (think: a completed install later causes damage). It’s commonly included within general liability and BOP structures, and it’s especially relevant for contractors, installers, and product-based businesses.

A COI is proof you carry coverage (often required by landlords, vendors, and project owners). Clients may also request to be named as an Additional Insured, which generally requires the proper endorsement—not just listing them on the certificate.

Usually not. CGL is built around third-party bodily injury/property damage and certain personal/advertising injuries, while cyber incidents typically need a dedicated cyber policy. (Banas offers Cyber Liability as a separate coverage line.)