The operations of your business can result in injuries to customers, vendors, visitors, and other members of the public. As a result, your business might be required to admit public liability and will find itself facing lawsuits and compensating community members. Be vigilant and prepare for the worst. Get business public liability insurance (PLI) along with commercial auto insurance and professional indemnity insurance to ensure full protection.
What is Public Liability Insurance?
It is an insurance policy that grants protection when your business is liable for the bodily injuries or property damage of customers, vendors, and other members of the public. Though available sometimes as a stand-alone policy, Some insurance companies offer public liability insurance for business as an optional coverage in a business owner’s policy with these other casualty insurance products:
- Professional liability insurance
- Non-owned/hired auto liability insurance
- Rented premises liability insurance
- Liquor liability insurance
- Product liability insurance
- Directors and officers liability insurance
- Excess liability insurance
Does The Law Require Businesses To Get Public Liability Insurance?
No laws in the United States require businesses to get PLI insurance nor punish the failure to get the coverage. But in practice, you might need to get PL insurance because of these reasons: Commercial Lease All landlords require business owners to get public liability insurance policies before signing a commercial lease. In connection, it’s almost impossible to get a space without the coverage. Licensing If you’re a plumbing, construction, or electrical contractor, authorities might require public liability insurance for licensing purposes.
What Does Public Liability Insurance Cover?
Public liability insurance covers the following if your business faces a claim for bodily injury or property damage:
- Defense costs such as attorney fees, investigation fees, administrative fees, and court filing fees
- The amount you must pay to the claimant by virtue of the court’s judgment
- Settlements
- Reimbursement for property damage
- Medical payments
Public liability insurance provides $300,000-$2 million coverage depending on the company that underwrote it.
Who Must Have Public Liability Insurance?
Businesses that constantly interact with people must have public liability insurance. Here are some examples:
- Retail stores
- Gas stations
- Consultancy offices
- Warehousing businesses
- Construction companies
- Appliance and computer repair shops
- Appliance and furniture stores
- Lawn care businesses
- Pool cleaning businesses
- Residential cleaning businesses
- Renovation and home addition contractors
- Car retail
- Car rental businesses
- Amusement parks
- Playgrounds
Public Liability Insurance Comparison
General Liability vs Public Liability Insurance
Public liability insurance takes care of the resulting costs if your business faces a claim for bodily injury or property damage. It only covers these perils and nothing else. Meanwhile, general liability insurance is very broad. It doesn’t only cover claims for bodily injuries or property damage but also:
- Slander, libel, invasion of privacy, and copyright infringement
- Your liability to a rented commercial space that fire damaged
- Vehicular accidents caused by a borrowed or hired vehicle
Public Liability And Professional Indemnity Insurance
You also need to know the difference between public liability and professional indemnity insurance. Unlike public liability insurance, professional indemnity insurance doesn’t cover bodily injuries or property damage. Instead, it kicks in when a client or any other third party files a claim because your business caused economic or financial losses by committing:
- Inaccurate advice
- Negligence
- Misrepresentation
- Breach of confidentiality
Public liability insurance is underwritten as a claims-made policy, as we said earlier. However, insurance companies underwrite public indemnity insurance as an occurrence or claims-made insurance product.
Businesses should also consider public indemnity insurance cost, which varies based on coverage limits and industry risk.
Public And Product Liability Insurance
Product liability and public liability insurance policy differ in terms of the perils they cover. Public liability insurance covers Bodily injuries or property damage caused by the product. Product liability insurance provides coverage if the product of your business causes injuries or property damage because of:
- Incorrect labeling
- Manufacturing defects
- Design errors
Moreover, product liability insurance can also take care of claims for food poisoning or foodborne illness if your business is in the food industry.
Public And Employers Liability Insurance
Aside from public liability insurance, your business also needs employer’s liability insurance. Public liability insurance for small business owners doesn’t cover costs if an employee sustains an injury or disease at work and then files a claim against your business. Employer’s liability insurance takes care of this risk, and pays for defense costs and settlements.
Public Liability Insurance for Events
You can get public liability insurance for events. Insurance companies include this in their events insurance policy together with event cancellation insurance, equipment coverage, liquor liability coverage, and more. You need public liability insurance for events if you’re setting up a:
- Festival
- Wedding
- Sporting event
- Live music event
- Theater event
Public liability insurance for events covers the bodily injuries or property damage of the participants, vendors, and volunteers. Its coverage might also extend to key persons of the event.
Get all the best quotes from leading providers in a click of a button!
Public Liability Insurance Cost
So how much is public liability insurance? The average public liability insurance cost is $21 per month or $252 per year. This is just an estimate. Your actual rate can be higher or lower. To get a further idea of public liability insurance cost, take a look at this table that shows how much recommended insurance companies charge for the policy.
| Cost per Month | Cost per Year | Best for | |
| NEXT | $8 | $96 | Best overall, Fastest public liability insurance |
| CoverWallet | $15 | $180 | Public liability insurance online quotes comparison |
| Tivly | $19 | $228 | Comparing public liability insurance quotes over the phone |
| Thimble | $24 | $288 | On-demand public liability insurance |
| Hiscox | $27 | $324 | Public liability insurance with worldwide coverage |
| Zurich | $33 | $396 | Small and large businesses who operate locally and internationally |
Factors Affecting the Cost of Public Liability Insurance
Insurance companies consider these factors when determining public liability insurance price:
- Claims history
- Business profile
- Number of employees
- Policy limits
- Location
- Whether or not you want to name additional insureds
- Annual revenues
- Employee payroll
Best Public Liability Insurance Companies
NEXT
NEXT’s public liability insurance is a part of its general liability policy. The limits of this company’s public liability insurance depend on whether you bought it as a basic policy, pro policy, or pro plus policy. NEXT offers cheap public liability insurance quotes, making it the most affordable option among all companies we reviewed.
Average cost: $8 per month
Our rating: 10/10
Pros
- Best overall
- Great customer service and reputation
- Excellent rates
- Outstanding value for money
- Offers the cheapest public liability insurance quote out of all companies we reviewed
Cons
- Couldn’t find any
Help others make better decisions
CoverWallet
CoverWallet doesn’t sell a stand-alone public liability insurance policy. Instead, this is included in its general liability insurance. Your public liability insurance from CoverWallet offers a $1 million coverage for each claim for bodily injury or property damage. The aggregate limit is $2 million. Average cost: $15 per month
Our rating: 10/10
Pros
- Stable rates
- Easily compare public liability insurance rates online to find the best coverage.
- Issues an instant public liability insurance quote
- Add additional insureds for free
- Pay premiums and manage your public liability insurance online through the MyCoverWallet app
Cons
- Not an insurance company but an insurance broker
Tivly
Tivly doesn’t offer public liability insurance as a stand-alone policy. You get the coverage by purchasing this company’s general liability insurance. Tivly doesn’t state how much coverage it can give, and it doesn’t issue your public liability insurance quotation online. Average cost: $19 per month Our rating: 10/10
Pros
- Call and get instant coverage
- Compare public liability insurance quotes over the phone
- Responsive customer service
Cons
- Doesn’t issue online public liability insurance quotes
Thimble
Thimble underwrites and sells public liability insurance as part of its long term and short term general liability insurance. You can also get monthly, hourly, or one day public liability insurance from this company if you purchase its short-term general liability insurance. Average cost: $24 per month
Our rating: 9/10
Pros
- Easy to get quotes
- Can provide public liability coverage for hours, days, weeks, or months
- Online public liability insurance certificate management
Cons
- You can’t reach customer service by phone
Hiscox
Hiscox also sells public liability insurance as part of its general liability policy. Your business type or profession determines how much coverage the policy can provide. Average cost: $27 per month
Our rating: 9/10
Pros
- Provides worldwide coverage
- Fast to process claims
- Has risk management resources
Cons
- Some customers complain that Hiscox didn’t resolve their claims well
Zurich
Zurich started providing insurance services in 1872. Therefore, it’s one of the longest thriving insurance companies. Zurich does business in the United States through its branch Zurich North America, which the Better Business Bureau rates with A+. Average cost: $33 per month Our rating: 9/10
Pros
- Covers court attendance costs
- Claims can be processed and tracked through Zurich North America website
Cons
- No standard pricing for premiums
