The coverage your customers and your contracts will ask for
General liability is the base layer of most commercial insurance programs. It covers claims that someone outside your business was injured or had property damaged because of your operations, your premises, or your completed work.
Walker Insurance Agency writes general liability for businesses across Mobile and Baldwin County.
It also covers personal and advertising injury — claims like libel, slander, or copyright issues in your marketing — and it pays defense costs, which matter even when a claim goes nowhere. Legal defense on a meritless suit still costs real money.
Most businesses find out they need it because a customer, a landlord, or a general contractor asks for a certificate. Commercial leases and construction contracts routinely require specific limits and additional insured status. Send us the contract and we will make sure the policy meets what it actually requires, rather than guessing.
What General Liability Covers
Bodily injury — A customer, vendor, or visitor injured at your location or because of your work.
Property damage — Damage you cause to someone else’s property while doing your job.
Products and completed operations — Claims arising from work you have already finished or a product you sold. In construction, these surface long after the job closed.
Personal and advertising injury — Libel, slander, copyright issues in your marketing, and similar claims.
Medical payments — Minor injuries on your premises, paid regardless of fault, which often resolves a small incident before it becomes a claim.
Legal defense costs — Paid by the carrier even when a claim has no merit. Defending a meritless suit still costs real money.
What It Does Not Cover
General liability is broad, and it is one piece of a program. These need their own coverage:
Injuries to your own employees — Workers Compensation
Damage to your own building, equipment, or inventory — Commercial Property
Accidents involving vehicles — Commercial Auto
Data breaches and cyber incidents — Cyber Liability
Claims arising from serving alcohol — Liquor Liability
Professional mistakes and bad advice — professional liability, which we can place
What This Means for Businesses Here
Certificates hold up work. On the Gulf Coast construction market, a general contractor will not let a sub start without a certificate showing the right limits and the right additional insured wording. We turn certificates around fast. Call (251) 422-9959 or email office@walkerins.biz.
Additional insured wording is specific, and contracts name forms. A contract may require a particular endorsement form, ongoing operations coverage, completed operations coverage, or both, plus primary and non-contributory language and a waiver of subrogation. Sending us the contract before you sign is the difference between having what you promised and finding out you do not.
Completed operations matter more in a rebuild market. Storm rebuild work means a lot of construction happening quickly. Claims from finished work can surface years later, and the policy that responds is the one in force when the claim is made or when the work was done, depending on how it is written. Confirm how long your completed operations coverage runs.
A business owners policy may be the better structure. Many small businesses combine general liability and commercial property into a BOP, which usually costs less than buying them separately. Not every business qualifies, and higher-hazard operations typically need standalone policies. We will tell you which side you fall on.
What Affects Your Cost
Your industry and class code, annual revenue, payroll, number of locations, the limits you select, claims history, whether your work is considered higher hazard, subcontractor use, the contracts and additional insured requirements you carry.
Frequently Asked Questions
What does general liability insurance cover?
Bodily injury and property damage to third parties arising from your operations, your premises, or your completed work. Personal and advertising injury. Medical payments for minor injuries on your premises regardless of fault. And your legal defense costs.
What does general liability not cover?
Injuries to your own employees, which is workers compensation. Damage to your own property, which is commercial property. Accidents involving vehicles, which is commercial auto. Professional mistakes and bad advice, which is professional liability. Data breaches, which is cyber. General liability is broad but it is one piece of a program.
What is an additional insured, and why does everyone want to be one?
An additional insured is a party added to your policy so your coverage responds if they are named in a claim arising from your work. General contractors, landlords, and larger customers routinely require it. Adding one is usually straightforward, but the specific wording matters and contracts often ask for particular endorsement forms. Send us the requirement.
Do I need general liability if I work alone?
Often yes. Sole proprietors and single-member businesses still face injury and property damage claims, and most commercial contracts require coverage regardless of company size. Working alone reduces the exposure; it does not remove it.
What affects the cost of general liability?
Your industry and class code, revenue, payroll, the limits you select, your claims history, where you operate, and whether your work is considered higher hazard.
Does Your Policy Meet What Your Contract Requires?
Send us your contract and your current declarations page. We will tell you whether your limits, your additional insured wording, and your completed operations coverage actually meet what you agreed to.