Bodily injury coverage

Bodily injury coverage in business insurance is what it sounds like —  insurance coverage for when someone is harmed physically. This can be an injury, but can also refer to sickness, disease, or any other incident that may require medical treatment.

How do businesses get bodily injury coverage?

Bodily injury liability insurance is generally included as a part of a larger business insurance policy, so you don’t have to purchase it separately. General liability insurance, product liability insurance, commercial auto insurance, and workers’ compensation insurance include forms of bodily injury coverage.

Whether someone trips and breaks their leg, is injured by a product you sold, gets rear-ended by one of your employees, or has an on-the-job accident, business insurance can help cover necessary medical expenses (up to your coverage limits).

Bodily injury vs. personal injury

Sometimes the terms bodily injury and personal injury are used interchangeably. For lawyers, personal injury can refer to incidents where someone suffers a physical injury, like a broken arm. But it can also refer to claims of harm that aren’t physical, like property damage, slander, or defamation.

In the insurance world, bodily injury stands separately from personal injury. As we know, bodily injury is when someone is harmed physically, but personal injury is when their personal reputation is damaged.

Because of this distinction, bodily and personal injury are not always offered together in insurance coverage. For example, while commercial auto and workers’ compensation only cover bodily injury, general liability covers both bodily and personal injury claims.

• General Liability. Helps cover bodily injuries to people who are not your employees. Also helps cover personal injuries such as accusations of libel or slander and advertising harm.
• Workers’ Comp. Helps covers bodily injuries to employees.
• Commercial Auto. Helps cover bodily injuries resulting from work-related car accidents.

Who needs bodily injury liability coverage?

Since there’s no way to avoid 100% of accidents, the simple answer is —  every business.

As a small business owner, accidents can happen at your place of business, to one of your employees, or while you’re on a project for someone else. Without proper bodily injury insurance, you would have the financial responsibility of paying medical payments or legal fees yourself (and we all know those bills aren’t getting cheaper.)

Luckily, bodily injury coverage is included in many insurance policies, and a good number of these are required by law.

For example, general contractors sometimes need general liability as part of the license requirements in their state because of the risks involved in their work. Similarly, fitness professionals often need coverage for some certifications, and it’s usually required if they work at a gym.

Depending on the state where you do business, if you have employees, you’re likely required to carry workers’ compensation insurance. Because workers’ comp covers bodily injury, if one of your people has an accident, the insurance will help pay for their medical bills.

While these legal requirements may seem annoying initially, they’re in place for a reason. If someone gets physically harmed and blames you, the injured person can get the care they need without financially harming you or your business. No harm, no foul.

NEXT helps small businesses get the right amount of coverage

Bodily injury coverage is just one part of our business insurance. Explore general liability, workers’ comp, or product liability to see how many things are covered when you work with NEXT.

You can start a quote, customize your options and access your certificate of insurance online immediately — in about 10 minutes.

Start your instant quote today.