COMMERCIAL GENERAL LIABILITY
What it is:
Protection for Bodily Injury and Property Damage claims to others that arise out of the operation of your business for which you are negligent.
What it is NOT:
Substitution for Workers' Compensation coverage - all Liability policies exclude work-related injuries.
Automobile/Aircraft coverage - this policy excludes liability for all motorized vehicles (an automobile policy is required). It also excludes any coverage for aircraft liability, whether you have a pilot's license, or you charter a plane.
Liquor Liability - there is no coverage provided for claims arising out of the manufacturing, distributing or selling of liquor.
Pollution Liability - specifically excluded.
Intentional Acts - excluded under the standard form.
Coverage for your product - there is no coverage provided for damage to your product or your work.
EMPLOYMENT PRACTICES LIABILITY
Employment Practices Liability Insurance (EPLI) provides defense and indemnity protection against claims arising from the employer/employee relationship. The policy shields employers - plus all current, former, and prospective employees, as well as directors and officers, even the Corporate entity - against a broad spectrum of employment-related claims.
Two U.S. Supreme Court decisions further underscore the need for firms to consider employment practices insurance coverage. In Oncale V. Sundowner Offshore Services, Inc., it was ruled that nothing in Title VII of the Federal Civil Rights Act of 1964 bars a claim for sexual harassment simply because the victim and harasser are of the same sex. In Faragher V. City of Boca Raton, the Court decided that employers are responsible for the sexual harassment of their supervisors, even if the employer did not know or reasonably could not have known about the conduct.
In response to this need, many of the Standard markets are now offering the Employment Practices Liability Insurance coverage. THE STANDARD GENERAL LIABILITY FORM EXCLUDES EMPLOYMENT PRACTICES LIABILITY COVERAGE. Liability limits range from $100,000 to $5,000,000 with deductibles ranging from $1,000 to $25,000.
Some of the types of "Wrongful Employment Practice" could include:
POLLUTION LIABILITY
Pollution Liability is different from the normal liability exposure and excluded from the standard Commercial General Liability Policy form.
Pollution Liability is "Strict Liability." There does not have to be any fault on the party being charged. Careless actions, product failure, improper disposal, inadequate emergency response, selection of incompetent contractors or transporters or disposal facilities are a few examples. Intentional Torts may include: nuisance, loud noise, bad odors, generation of fog, bright lights, electrical waves, or electromagnetic field. Trespass may include: dust, chemical, release of particles from a smoke stack, runoff of pesticides, etc.
There are several different types of pollution coverage. A sampling follows:
- Site Pollution
- Consultants Coverage
- Transportation Pollution
- Contractors Pollution
- Property Transfer
- UST/AST Insurance