The best general liability insurance for small businesses: a comprehensive guide.

A small business can be severely impacted by an injury sustained by a customer or client. General liability insurance can safeguard against financial losses resulting from such incidents.

A business owner's policy (BOP) or a standalone policy can provide coverage for a business owner.

CNBC Select has identified the top providers of general liability insurance for small businesses across different categories. (Learn more about our selection process in our methodology.)

Best for freelancers: Next

Freelancers and independent contractors can quickly obtain professional and general liability insurance through Next, with the ability to receive instant quotes, complete the application, and obtain a certificate of insurance online.

Next provides coverage in numerous industries that freelancers operate in, such as fitness, design, cleaning, food and beverage, and entertainment.

Best for professionals: biBerk

What is biBerk? It is a division of Berkshire Hathaway that provides professional and general liability business insurance in various fields, including accounting, advertising, healthcare, construction, and information technology.

BiBerk's general liability policies include endorsements for employee practices liability insurance and HNOA if you frequently rent cars.

Best for physical locations: Nationwide

What type of coverage does Nationwide offer in addition to general liability insurance for commercial properties?

Cyber liability coverage from Nationwide can aid in the event of a cyberattack or data breach.

Best for companies with employees: Travelers

What is this intended for? General liability insurance for travelers can be combined with policies for businesses with employees, such as compensation plans that are directly linked to payroll.

Travelers also provides worker's compensation for small businesses, which is a necessity in almost every state for companies with multiple employees.

More on our top general liability insurance companies

Next

Since its launch in 2017, Next Insurance has been offering liability insurance for over 1,300 professions. However, coverage may not be available for businesses with more than two claims in the past three years or with annual revenue exceeding $5 million.

Availability: All 50 U.S. states

Maximum liability limit: $4 million aggregate

Online claims: Yes

A.M. Best financial strength rating: A- (Excellent)

NAIC complaint index: Greater than expected

biBerk

BiBerk, an online division of Warren Buffet's Berkshire Hathaway, was founded in 2015 to simplify the costly process of obtaining small business insurance. BiBerk claims its policies are up to 20% cheaper than its competitors. The Better Business Bureau gave BiBerk an A+ rating, and it was a 2024 winner of the BBB Torch Award for Ethics.

Availability: Available in 27 states

Maximum liability limit: Not stated

Online claims: Yes

A.M. Best financial strength rating: A++ (Superior)

NAIC complaint index: Greater than expected

Nationwide

Since its establishment in 1926, Nationwide, based in Columbus, Ohio, provides a range of insurance products for business owners. These include general liability, commercial auto and property coverage, workers' compensation, business interruption insurance, cyber liability, errors and omissions, equipment breakdown, business umbrella, and builders risk insurance.

Availability: All 50 U.S. states

Maximum liability limit: Not stated

Online claims: Yes

A.M. Best financial strength rating: A- (Excellent)

NAIC complaint index: Greater than expected

Travelers

In 2023, Travelers, the second largest provider of commercial insurance in the U.S, wrote more than $2.4 billion in direct premiums. Although it doesn't have an online application, Travelers' self-service MyTravelers platform enables anyone involved in a claim to track its progress.

Availability: All 50 U.S. states

Maximum liability limit: Not stated

Online claims: Yes

A.M. Best financial strength rating: A++ (Superior)

NAIC complaint index: Greater than expected

What is general liability insurance?

Business insurance that safeguards your company from lawsuits involving physical harm, property damage, or defamation is known as general liability insurance.

If your business is held liable for someone's injuries, a policy can cover their medical expenses and pay for legal fees and settlement costs to protect your company's financial stability.

A Business Owner's Policy (BOP) can include general liability insurance, which is also known as commercial general liability or business liability insurance. This coverage can be purchased separately or combined with other types of insurance.

You may need to provide proof of coverage to various parties you conduct business with, although it's not legally mandated.

What does general liability insurance cover?

General liability insurance covers a variety of scenarios:

• Bodily injury: Pays medical bills for someone injured by your business
• Property damage: Pays to repair or replace property damaged by your business
• Advertising injury: Costs relating to copyright infringement
• Reputational harm: Covers liability for libel or slander
• If you are sued for a reason specified in your policy, you will be responsible for paying for a lawyer, legal fees, and settlement costs.

What does general liability insurance not cover?

General liability insurance has limitations. It doesn't cover the following situations:

• Employee injury or illness
• Business property damage or theft
• Auto liability
• Professional errors

Errors and omissions insurance, commercial auto insurance, and related policies may cover worker's compensation.

How much does general liability insurance cost?

According to Insureon, an online marketplace for small business insurance, small businesses typically pay around $500 annually for general liability insurance.

The cost of starting a business can vary greatly depending on various factors such as location, number of employees, industry, and years in business.

Deciding whether to have a standalone policy or coverage included in a BOP can help you get the best price by comparing several quotes.

Pros and cons of general liability insurance

How to choose the right general liability insurance

To choose the best company, consider these criteria:

• Obtain quotes from multiple insurers for the same coverage with three or four quotes.
• Our top picks come with endorsements for liquor liability, employee practices liability, and HNOA liability.
• The per-occurrence and aggregate limits of general liability insurance policies may not be sufficient for some smaller insurers.
• Determine if online filing is an option for claims and the speed of claim processing.
• The effectiveness of a general liability policy is limited if the insurer fails to fulfill its payment obligations on a claim. Companies with an AM Best financial strength rating of A or higher are more likely to meet their obligations.
• Are you looking for an insurer that offers customer service on nights and weekends? Do you prefer an online chat option or working with an agent in person? Your answers will help you find the best provider based on J.D. Power's Small Commercial Insurance Study, which rates providers on trust, pricing, coverage offerings, ease of use, and digital channels.

Why trust CNBC Select?

Our goal at CNBC Select is to deliver top-notch service journalism and in-depth consumer advice to our readers, enabling them to make well-informed decisions when it comes to their finances. Each insurance review we publish is the result of thorough reporting by our team of expert writers and editors, who possess extensive knowledge of insurance products. At CNBC Select, we are committed to maintaining our journalistic standards and ethics, even though we earn a commission from our affiliate partners on many offers and links.

Our methodology

Over a dozen companies offering business insurance were evaluated by CNBC Select, which collected hundreds of data points to determine the best general liability insurance companies.

We evaluated providers based on affordability, availability, coverage options, industries insured, and customer service when choosing the best ones.

In addition to evaluating customer satisfaction scores from J.D. Power's Small Commercial Insurance Study, the National Association of Insurance Commissioners, and the Better Business Bureau, as well as financial strength ratings from A.M. Best, we also took into account CNBC Select audience data, such as demographics and engagement with our content and tools.

We sorted our top picks for freelancers, professionals, physical locations, and companies with employees.

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