Insurance exists for the purpose of protecting persons and organizations from the adverse financial consequences of certain unpredictable events, regardless of the coverage line being considered. For general liability insurance, the unpredictable event that constitutes the subject of the insurance is a claim of legal liability arising out of a company’s operations, premises, products, and completed work.

The Commercial Auto policy will pay “sums” for which the insured is legally liable because of bodily injury or property damage to which the insurance applies. Therefore, while covered bodily injury or property damage is required to trigger coverage, recovery under the policy can actually go beyond these types of damages.

Auto Physical Damage is coverage for damage to autos owned by the insured, and it’s completely optional (unless required by a lender). Physical damage coverage is divided into loss caused by collision, and loss caused by something other than collision. (The latter category is frequently referred to as comprehensive coverage, but in reality, “comprehensive coverage” is one of two types of coverage for loss caused by “other than collision.”) These are separate coverages, with different rates, and at the insured’s option, different deductibles. They can be purchased separately or in combination.

The hired auto and nonowned auto liability endorsement is appropriate for use only if the insured entity does not own any automobiles. In fact, ISO Commercial Lines Manual rules specify that the endorsement is not available to insureds that have another policy covering commercial auto exposures. It provides coverage for bodily injury and property damage liability in connection with just “hired autos,” just “nonowned autos,” or both, as indicated in the endorsement schedule.

The hired auto and nonowned auto liability endorsement is appropriate for use only if the insured entity does not own any automobiles. In fact, ISO Commercial Lines Manual rules specify that the endorsement is not available to insureds that have another policy covering commercial auto exposures. It provides coverage for bodily injury and property damage liability in connection with just “hired autos,” just “nonowned autos,” or both, as indicated in the endorsement schedule.

Commercial property  is the policy that an organization purchases to pay for damage to its own buildings and the personal property in them. A commercial property policy can also cover loss of income or increase in expenses that result from insured damage to buildings and their contents.

Umbrella liability insurance and excess liability insurance are two forms of secondary coverage—that is, they both sit above one or more underlying liability policies and do not attach until the underlying policy’s limit of insurance has been exhausted.