General Liability Insurance: What It Is and What It Costs
General liability insurance covers claims that your business caused bodily injury to someone or damaged their property, plus related legal defense. It is the policy a client contract, a landlord, or a license most often requires before you can start work. It does not cover your own injuries, your employees, your vehicles, or mistakes in professional advice; those are separate policies. Beaconcover is not a licensed broker; we explain the coverage and route you to carriers.
The short answer
Most small trades need general liability because someone, a client, a general contractor, a landlord, or a licensing board, requires proof of it before you can work or sign a contract. Typical small-operator policies are written at $1M per occurrence and $2M aggregate limits, the level most client contracts and licenses specify [III: business insurance basics, 2026-05]. Specialty small-business carriers bind low-hazard trades online; standard-market carriers typically route the same trades through an agent.
What does general liability cover and exclude?
It covers third-party bodily injury (a visitor trips over your equipment), third-party property damage (you damage a client's floor), and the legal defense and settlement costs that follow, plus products-and-completed-operations claims for work after you finish a job [III: business insurance basics, 2026-05]. It excludes your own employees' injuries (workers' compensation), damage to vehicles used for work (commercial auto), professional mistakes and bad advice (professional liability or errors and omissions), and damage to the specific item you were working on, which usually needs a care-custody-and-control endorsement. See the general liability coverage page for the endorsement detail.
How much it costs
Price depends on trade, revenue, claims history, location, and the limits you carry, so a single number is misleading. Lower-hazard trades pay less than higher-hazard ones such as roofing, and adding employees or vehicles changes the total program cost, not just the GL line. Hazard class is the largest single driver: consultants and other desk-based trades sit at the low end, cleaning and landscaping in the middle, and roofing and other trades working at height are materially higher because the loss frequency and severity are higher [III: business insurance basics, 2026-05]. Beaconcover does not publish a premium it cannot source: trade-specific ranges are on the profession pages, and the cost guide breaks down what drives the price.
How much coverage you need
The practical answer is usually set for you: the contract, license, or landlord that requires the policy also states a minimum limit, commonly $1M per occurrence and $2M aggregate. Buy at least what the requiring party demands, and consider higher limits or an umbrella if your work can cause large losses or if you bid larger contracts that ask for more. Confirm the exact required limit in writing before binding, because buying below it means you cannot actually take the job.
Where to get quotes
Get quotes from two or three carriers that fit your trade rather than buying the first one. Specialty digital carriers issue a certificate of insurance online within minutes of binding, which matters when a general contractor is waiting on proof before you can start [SBA: get business insurance, 2026-05]. See the profession pages for trade-specific coverage requirements and /methodology/ for what to look for in any plan.
Frequently asked questions
Coverage for third-party bodily injury and property damage your business causes, plus legal defense. It is the policy most client contracts and licenses require.
Not a broker. Beaconcover is an independent comparison site. We are not a licensed insurance broker, agent, or adviser; we route you to providers and do not sell, bind, or advise on policies, and nothing here is legal or tax advice. Coverage, price, and requirements vary by state, profession, payroll, and underwriting. See /methodology/ and /disclosure/. Last reviewed: 2026-05-16.