General liability (GL) is foundational business coverage that protects your company against third-party claims for bodily injury, property damage, and personal and advertising injury. Examples of what GL pays for:

• A customer slips and falls in your office or storefront
• Your delivery van scratches a client’s parked car (note: vehicle-related coverage is usually under commercial auto, but GL covers the resulting bodily-injury or property-damage exposure off the road)
• A subcontractor working on your behalf damages a client’s property
• Your business is sued for libel, slander, or copyright infringement in an advertisement
• Defense costs — usually paid in addition to the policy limit on most modern GL policies

GL does not cover damage to your own property (that’s commercial property), professional advice or service errors (that’s professional liability / E&O), employee injuries (that’s workers’ comp), or auto accidents (that’s commercial auto). Most businesses need GL plus 2–3 of those other coverages depending on operations.