Every business — including those that are home-based — needs general liability insurance, because it covers most of the common types of accidents that can occur when you’re interacting with a customer or client. This coverage protects against financial loss as the result of:
- Third-party bodily injury
- Third-party property damage
- Third-party claims of libel
- Third-party claims of slander
- Legal defense of a claim
- A lawsuit arising out of one of these things
General liability insurance is strongly recommended no matter the size of your business because it protects you against these “third-party” claims. Who counts as a third party? Anyone with whom you interact during the course of your workday who isn’t yourself or your employees. This is the insurance policy that will often protect you from accidents, big and small, that involve a customer or passerby. An example would be to think of spilling a cup of coffee on a client’s computer or leaving a tool laying around their home.
Beyond proactively protecting your business from everyday accidents, it can also give your business the legitimacy you need in order to gain more (and bigger) customers. In fact, many companies and organizations will require their vendors to provide proof of insurance — most commonly, general liability insurance — in order to be approved for a job.
In summary, general liability insurance is an essential layer of protection over your day-to-day operations and the gateway to even more success.