Minnesota Business Insurance

General liability insurance, known as Commercial General Liability (CGL), protects your business from another person or business’s claims of bodily injury, associated medical costs, and damage to property. Some examples of what could be covered are below:

• Bodily injury: An interior designer invites a prospective client to their home office to review color and fabric samples. The client trips on the steps and breaks their arm. The designer has a general liability insurance policy which could cover the costs of the client's injuries.
• Property damage/data Loss: An IT consultant is installing a new network at a client's office. While transferring the data from the old server to the new one, several important files are corrupted. The client sues the consultant for the financial implications of the lost data. A general liability policy could cover these costs, protecting the IT consultant.
• Discrimination: A company retained a human resources consultant to oversee the hiring of a large number of seasonal employees. A number of applicants claimed they were being directed toward lower paying positions because they were women. They filed suit against both the hiring company and the consultant. General liability insurance protects HR consultants against claims of negligence and will appoint an attorney to defend them, even if they haven't made a mistake.

Learn more about general liability insurance costs.

Professional liability insurance, also known as errors and omissions insurance (E&O insurance), covers another person’s claims against businesses that provide professional and personal services. Some examples of what could be covered include:

• Dissatisfied client: An insurance company recommended a claims adjuster to provide an estimate for a burglary in an office building. The adjuster provided an estimate that was much higher than the insurance company anticipated, and the insurance company suspected that the adjuster did not properly ascertain that all of the property claimed to have been stolen had actually been in the building at the time of the burglary. The insurance company sued the adjuster. Professional liability insurance protects claims adjustors against claims of negligence and will appoint an attorney to defend them, if needed, even if they haven't made a mistake.
• Negligence: A financial advisor hires a temporary worker to help out during tax season. The temp incorrectly credits an IRA contribution for the previous tax year, which causes a client to have to pay additional tax and a penalty. The client sues the advisor to recover the penalty, but the advisor is protected by a professional liability insurance policy.

Learn more about professional liability insurance.

Business owners policy (BOP) is a combination of general liability and business property insurance. BOP is often used to provide balanced coverage for small businesses who also want to protect their own business equipment. Some examples of what could be covered are below:

• A graphic designer’s home office is damaged by fire. The damage to a high end computer caused by the fire is not covered by their homeowner’s insurance, but it is covered by their business owner’s policy, which replaces the computer and lets the designer get back to business.
• A computer programmer spills his coffee on a high end computer system causing irreparable damage. A business owner’s policy could cover the cost to replace the system, letting the programmer get back to work.

Learn more about business owners insurance.