General liability insurance is the foundational policy most businesses carry, the one that responds when someone outside the business claims it caused them harm. It is broad, common, and often required by landlords and clients, but its scope has real edges worth understanding.
A general liability policy generally covers third-party claims of bodily injury and property damage arising from the business's operations, along with certain personal and advertising injuries like defamation. If a customer slips in your store, or your work damages a client's property, this is the coverage that responds, paying defense costs and covered damages up to the policy limits.
General liability is not everything. It generally excludes harm to your own employees, covered by workers' compensation, professional mistakes, covered by professional liability, damage to your own property, and specialized risks like cyber or auto. Businesses that assume general liability is a catch-all discover the gaps at the worst time. It is the base layer, not the whole stack.
Policies carry per-occurrence and aggregate limits, and higher exposures are often layered with an umbrella policy on top. Right-sizing the limits to the real risk, and understanding what sits outside the policy, is the work. A business's coverage should be built as a coordinated set, with general liability as the foundation.
The base layer, not the whole stack.
This is general information, not personalized insurance advice. Coverage terms, definitions, and availability vary by policy and provider.