6 Cheapest General Liability Insurance Companies for Small Businesses

We received a quote from The Hartford for a $1 million general liability policy with $2 million in aggregate limits, which cost $29.25 a month or $351 annually.

The Hartford offers a wide range of policies you can bundle with its standalone general liability policy, including professional liability and LLC insurance coverage. If your small business is a tax or accounting firm, or you have formed an LLC, then The Hartford is the right choice.

Policies with The Hartford are available nationwide. You can get a quote and purchase a policy online or through an independent agent. Once purchased, you can also manage your policy online. Independent agents who are small business owners voted The Hartford as one of the best companies to work with in J.D. Power’s Independent Agent Satisfaction Study.

Customers are also happy with The Hartford, which has lower-than-average complaints with the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC). The insurance company also encourages and publishes customer reviews on its website and has 4.8 out of 5 stars from nearly 600 user reviews, specifically about general liability claims.

We received five quotes from Simply Business for a handyperson business. All of the quotes carried the same level of coverage: general liability with $1 million per occurrence and $2 million aggregate. The prices ranged from $547 to $1,013 annually.

The quote for $547 annually was through Harborway Insurance and included $100,000 in damage to premises rented to you and a $2 million limit for products and completed operations. We were given two payment options: yearly or monthly. For the monthly option of the above quote, you owe the first two months upfront and then make ten monthly payments to cover the remainder.

Once you purchase a policy through Simply Business, you will receive an email with your policy and a certificate of insurance (COI).

Simply Business is available in all 50 states and Washington, D.C. Its offerings are more focused on microbusinesses rather than large businesses—and while not all coverages are available in every state, you can get a quote for general liability and professional liability anywhere in the US.

Simply Business customers are happy with their experience. On the independent review site Trustpilot, Simply Business has earned 4.6 out of 5 stars from over 1,200 reviews.

After purchasing a policy, you can manage it online, pay bills, and request a COI when you need proof of insurance. If you need to file a claim, you can contact Simply Business directly or call your carrier—the brokerage provides the claim contact information for every carrier it works with.

We received a quote for general liability with a monthly cost of $15.86. This base policy had $1 million per occurrence limits and $2 million aggregate.

Next Insurance’s standard general liability includes coverage for property damage, bodily injury, damage to premises your business rents, medical expenses, personal and advertising injury, and product liability.

Convenience is one area where Next Insurance shines. Whether online or through the Next Insurance app, you can manage your policy and claims 24/7. You can change coverage or file a claim on the app, too. Next also recently enhanced its app to create and share a free COI within seconds.

We received a quote for a home-based jewelry-making business in less than a minute. Very few questions were asked during the process, and Thimble made it clear that this policy was designed for something other than a more significant business with sales of hundreds of thousands of dollars a year. The insurance could be purchased online and began the same day. The cost for the general liability policy with $1 million in limits was $21.88 monthly.

Whether you’re a current customer or just shopping for insurance, you can download the Thimble app to get a quote, purchase and manage your policy, and file claims. Thimble is the only provider on this list that allows you to get a quote directly on its app.

Once the policy is purchased, you receive an instant COI. You can request as many copies of the COI as you need, and a digital copy is available on the app.

FLIP provides a very straightforward quote system. You can purchase the necessary coverage in minutes—even same-day coverage—without speaking with anyone.

We received a quote for general liability and equipment on a food truck. The cost is $34.17 monthly. The policy carried $2 million aggregate in general liability, $2 million in products-completed operations, $300,000 for damage to a rented premise, and $5,000 for tools and equipment. The entire quote process took less than five minutes.

FLIP is available in all 50 states. Once you purchase a policy from it, you will gain an online account with 24/7 access to your policy documents and the ability to get free and unlimited COIs for your business.

Online reviews are positive. FLIP has received 500 five-star reviews from users on its website. The policy is from the Great American Insurance Company, which has lower-than-average complaints with the NAIC.

Currently, biBERK offers coverage for over 50 different industries. The provider states that you can purchase general liability for under $30 a month, but the price will depend on the industry and specific information about your business. It has a minimum annual premium of $275. You can obtain a business owner’s policy (BOP) for this price, including general liability.

The general liability policy with biBERK excludes personal and advertising injury. If that is the coverage you seek, you will need a professional liability policy from this provider.

While biBERK is unavailable in all 50 states for general liability (see biBERK’s coverage maps), this newer company is growing. Over 50,000 small businesses have chosen biBERK, which has an average rating of 4.9 out of 5 stars from over 40,000 reviews on its website.

Conveniently, you can quickly obtain a quote and purchase a policy online. If something happens to your business, you can file a claim online, and a member of biBERK’s in-house claims department will be in touch shortly. However, biBERK is only open on weekdays from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. ET if you need to reach someone.

If you’re reading this article, odds are that you already know you need general liability. As a general overview, a standard general liability policy gives you protection in these areas:

• Bodily injury
• Property damage
• Personal injury and reputational harm

Most policies also include the following:

• Damage to premises you rent
• Product liability

While those coverage areas are standard on general liability policies, only some provide the same coverage level. Sometimes, there will be one aggregate limit for multiple types of protection, and other times, there will be separate limits.

This means that if you have a significant product liability claim, it may exhaust the benefits of your policy for all types of coverage. So, it is essential that when looking for the cheapest general liability insurance, make sure you’ve got the right amount of coverage for each line of coverage within the policy.

At first glance, this may not seem important. However, the services provided can make a critical difference for your business.

For example, if you are a contractor looking for cheap contractor’s insurance, one thing you know matters is being able to produce a COI regularly. You’ll also want to be able to modify the policy quickly to add additional insureds. So, it is important to find a carrier that understands that and has made it easy for you to produce proof of insurance quickly.

It is important to talk to someone at any time when you have a problem. So check out the contact hours for the carrier: Is it only on weekdays? What if you operate a restaurant with a bar open late on the weekends? If there is a claim late Friday night, is it important for you to file it Friday night, or are you okay with waiting until Monday to start the process?

The good news is that you can get cheap general liability insurance and still find carriers that offer excellent services. Services like the ones described above, along with the level of complaints, are some of what we factor into our evaluation of the cheapest general liability insurance companies.

The next step to finding cheap general liability insurance for your business is to work directly with a provider or carrier or find a broker to compare quotes from top providers. In some cases, you may need an insurance broker rather than a carrier. Many providers who work directly with customers will offer cheaper insurance because there is no agent or broker fee.

Typically, one of the best ways to determine the cheapest policy is by comparing quotes. We’ve compiled a guide on comparing small business insurance quotes.

Additionally, bundling is a great way to save money on business insurance. If your business needs professional liability, look for a carrier that will include that coverage with general liability insurance for a lower price. Or, if your company has property, consider a business owner’s policy, which is a combination of property and general liability coverage and is almost always cheaper than buying each policy separately.

A safe workplace is very important when trying to ensure you have low-cost business liability insurance. That’s because your claims history is a key driver in the cost of general liability insurance. The best way to prevent claims is to ensure you have a safe business proactively.

• Train your employees: Whether it is food service, customer service, or being careful of what is discussed in front of employees, properly training your employees will help prevent unnecessary claims.
• Risk assessment: Conduct assessments of your business regularly, looking for blind spots in your operations that open you to the risk of a loss. Some carriers will provide risk assessments for free, often from industry experts.
• Liability waivers: While a liability waiver isn’t a foolproof way to avoid a lawsuit if your business has known risks for customers, having them sign a waiver can help lower your premium and discourage claims from being filed.
• Visible signage: Wet floor? Make sure a sign is appropriately displayed. Your business is not responsible for lost or stolen items. Make sure that it is communicated to customers. A sign can go a long way in helping your company keep a clean claims history.

General liability insurance is a third-party insurance that every business should consider and, in many cases, must carry. It covers claims involving property damage, bodily injury, or personal advertising injury caused by negligence during business operations. Many policies also carry additional coverage, like damage to your rental premises.

General liability does not cover intentional acts or claims when you fail to honor a contract. It also doesn’t cover your property or injuries to your employees. For more information, read our guide about standard general liability insurance exclusions.

When purchasing business insurance, it is important to understand what coverage you need so you don’t pay for unnecessary coverage. Comparing providers is a great way to get quality coverage at an affordable price. If the provider offers flexibility, you can manage your limits and deductible to help offset the premium. You can learn more in our article on ways to save money on business insurance.

The answer depends on the type of business insurance you purchase. If you are getting general liability insurance, then no. General liability insurance almost universally doesn’t carry a deductible, so raising your deductible is not an option. However, if you are purchasing professional liability or commercial property insurance, raising the deductible is a way to find low-cost business insurance.

While no insurer can claim the title of “overall most affordable liability provider,” The Hartford is the best provider for cheap general liability insurance after our evaluation. This conclusion weighs the financial stability, customer service reviews and offerings, convenience, quality of the policy (such as what endorsements it offers and limits), and, of course, the average premium for general liability insurance.

In researching this article, we received quotes ranging from $350 to over $12,000 annually. The cost of insurance varies by industry, claims history, the size of the business, revenue, and the number of employees.

A certificate of insurance, or COI, is a one-page document that summarizes your insurance and can be used as proof of insurance. Many industries, like construction, use COIs when bidding on a job. Some companies you work with will ask to be listed as an additional insured and then request a COI showing the addition. When shopping for general liability insurance, finding a provider that makes creating and sharing a COI easy is important.

Providers calculate the general liability (GL) premium by industry class codes, business revenue, claims history, and business size. Thankfully, finding cheap general liability insurance for small businesses isn’t impossible because you can control some factors (e.g., maintaining a safe environment to limit claims). Other factors, like the industry class code, are out of the control of the business.

Small business insurance encompasses any type of insurance policy a small business may purchase. General liability is one type of small business insurance, but it is not the only type—commercial property, commercial auto, professional liability, and workers’ compensation are all types of small business insurance policies, too.