Commercial General Insurance
Core concepts
Commercial questions test business interruption, public and products liability, employers' liability, commercial property, fleet motor, and professional indemnity. Know sum insured, declaration-linked and adjustable policies, and co-insurance. Understand liability limits (per claim vs aggregate), claims-made vs occurrence cover, and retroactive dates for professional indemnity.
Key distinctions: public liability (third-party injury/property damage), products liability (goods supplied), employers' liability (employee injury), and professional indemnity (negligent advice). Understand business interruption as covering lost profit and increased cost of working after an insured peril.
Traps
- Confusing claims-made (PI) with occurrence (public liability) triggers.
- Assuming public liability covers employee injuries - that is employers' liability.
- Forgetting business interruption requires a property damage trigger (usually).
- Mixing per-claim and aggregate limits.
Rule of thumb
Ask: Who is harmed - public, employee, client, or the business itself? That maps the correct policy.
Worked example
A fire stops production for three months. Business interruption covers lost gross profit plus extra costs to maintain output, subject to the sum insured and indemnity period.