What Does General Liability Insurance Cover for Businesses in Florida?

Understanding the different types of insurance for businesses, like general liability and Workers’ Compensation insurance, is crucial. In Florida, the former protects you in the event of a customer injury, while the latter protects you in the event of an employee injury.

Getting general liability insurance is a good idea for most businesses in Florida, especially those who welcome customers onto their property regularly. General liability insurance can cover costs that stem from visitor or customer injuries but will not cover employee injuries. This is the job of Workers’ Compensation insurance. In Florida, businesses are not required to get general liability insurance. Conversely, many businesses in the state are mandated to get Workers’ Compensation insurance. Generally, getting both types of insurance is wise to protect your company from financial responsibility for injuries on all fronts.

Our Florida Workers’ Compensation insurance brokers can help you find coverage quickly when you call NPN Brokers at (561) 990-3022.

What Does General Liability Insurance Cover for Florida Businesses?

Two main types of insurance businesses in Florida typically get are general liability insurance and Workers’ Compensation insurance. The former, general liability insurance, protects businesses in the event of an accident that causes injury or property damage to a customer or visitor on their property in Florida.

Despite your best efforts to maintain a safe environment for your customers in Florida, patrons might be injured while visiting your business. In retail stores and restaurants, slip and fall accidents are common. Falling objects might strike people passing construction sites due to negligent employees. Visitors might be injured at your business because of negligence on behalf of employees or other individuals on your property. These injuries can be serious and costly to businesses that do not have the coverage necessary to protect themselves. General liability insurance can cover the expenses of those injured while at your place of business, provided they are not employees.

Having general liability insurance is important for Florida businesses because it typically allows them to evade litigation following injuries to a customer or patron. Your business’s general liability insurance can cover an injured person’s medical bills, lost wages, or other damages following an accident on your property in Florida. In addition to injuries, general liability insurance can also cover property damage that claimants sustain while on a business’s property in Florida, allowing companies to avoid expensive lawsuits.

What Doesn’t General Liability Insurance Cover for Businesses in Florida?

General liability insurance isn’t all-inclusive and doesn’t cover all types of accidents and injuries sustained at businesses in Florida. For example, your general liability insurance won’t provide a pathway to recovery for employees that are injured on the job.

Workers’ Compensation insurance is a separate type of insurance employers in Florida must purchase to cover an employee’s damages from a workplace accident. Workers’ Compensation coverage exclusively provides a remedy to injured workers, not a business’s patrons, customers, or visitors. Injured employees can’t file a claim to recover compensation through your general liability insurance and must do so through your Workers’ Compensation coverage in Florida.

This means that having general liability insurance will not protect your business from litigation if an employee is injured. Only Workers’ Compensation insurance can do that, as employees covered by Workers’ Compensation can only file a claim and cannot sue their employer. Conversely, Workers’ Compensation coverage will not protect you if a visitor, not an employee, is injured at your place of business.

Getting Workers’ Compensation in addition to general liability insurance might seem unnecessary to businesses that aren’t required to have this other type of coverage under Florida law. However, our Florida Workers’ Compensation insurance brokers know that no business is immune to workplace accidents or employees sustaining serious injuries. Because your general liability insurance will not apply to employees hurt at work, it is also important to get Workers’ Compensation insurance for added protection.

Do Businesses Need General Liability Insurance and Workers’ Comp Insurance in Florida?

The prospect of paying two insurance premiums for two different types of coverage can seem needless to employers in Florida. While general liability insurance isn’t required for any business in the state, Workers’ Compensation insurance is required for most companies.

Any company that employs four or more workers in Florida must get Workers’ Compensation insurance. This is the law, and failure to comply might result in considerable financial penalties for businesses as well as stop-work orders.

On the other hand, general liability insurance isn’t required. However, if you want to protect your company from liability for a visitor’s injuries as well as an employee’s, getting general liability insurance on top of Workers’ Compensation insurance is recommended.

Some businesses rarely see visitors, if ever. Not all companies in Florida provide a service that requires clients to visit their property, making general liability insurance unnecessary. However, Workers’ Compensation insurance is crucial for all businesses, regardless of industry or how many workers they employ. Even if your employees’ responsibilities do not involve manual labor or the use of dangerous materials, they might still be injured on the job. Because of that, forgoing getting Workers’ Compensation is inadvisable and may open your company up to financial liability for expensive employee injuries in Florida.

It is a good idea for businesses in Florida to get general liability insurance and Workers’ Compensation insurance. Our brokers can source Workers’ Compensation quotes that are within your budget and consider the price of your general liability insurance so that the cost does not become overwhelming for your business. This can allow you to remain protected from all sorts of accidents that might occur on your property, whether they cause injuries to employees or visitors.

Call NPN Brokers for Workers’ Comp Insurance

For protection from liability for workplace accidents, call the Florida Workers’ Compensation insurance brokers at NPN Brokers at (561) 990-3022.