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Coverage explainers
General Liability vs. Professional Liability: Why You Probably Need Both
Published January 2026 6 min read
What GL covers
General Liability responds to physical events: a customer trips in your office, your installer damages a homeowner's floor, a competitor sues you for ad copy that disparages their product. GL is third-party bodily injury, property damage, and personal/advertising injury.
What Professional Liability covers
Professional Liability (also called Errors & Omissions, or E&O) responds to claims that your professional work caused financial harm. A consultant gives advice that produces a loss. An IT firm misconfigures a migration. An architect's design causes a budget overrun. The harm is financial, not physical — and that's why GL won't respond.
Why service firms need both
Even a fully remote consulting firm needs GL to handle hired/non-owned auto, premises injury at client offices, and personal/advertising injury claims. And every service firm that gives advice or produces a deliverable needs E&O. The two lines are complementary, not redundant.
Related coverage
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