Skip to content 
Commercial general liability (CGL) insurance provides coverage for third-party claims resulting from bodily injury, property damage, personal and advertising injury, and medical payments, when businesses, contractors, or property owners cause harm through their operations, premises, products, or completed work in Chicago and throughout Illinois.
Walner Law represents people injured in slip and fall accidents, construction site incidents, product-related injuries, and other incidents where businesses’ CGL policies should compensate victims but insurers deny coverage, dispute liability, or refuse to pay fair settlements.
Key Takeaways for CGL Coverage When You’re Injured
- CGL policies provide three core coverages that may compensate you: Coverage A (bodily injury and property damage), Coverage B (personal and advertising injury), and Coverage C (medical payments for minor injuries)
- CGL excludes certain claims, including professional malpractice, auto accidents, intentional acts, and pollution, meaning you may need to pursue other insurance policies or sue the responsible party directly
- Additional insured endorsements may provide multiple sources of coverage when landlords, general contractors, or property owners share responsibility for your injuries
- Illinois comparative negligence under 735 ILCS 5/2-1116 reduces your recovery by your percentage of fault; if you’re 51% or more at fault, you recover nothing
- Understanding CGL coverage and exclusions helps you identify all available insurance sources and pursue full compensation for your injuries
What Does a CGL Policy Cover When You’re Injured by a Chicago Business?
CGL insurance compensates third parties, customers, visitors, contractors, neighboring property owners, or members of the public injured by business operations. When a business’s negligence causes your injury or property damage, its CGL policy should cover your medical bills, lost wages, pain and suffering, and property repair costs.
Coverage A: Bodily Injury and Property Damage Liability
Coverage A compensates you for physical injuries or property damage caused by business operations, premises conditions, products, or completed work.
Bodily injury claims you can pursue under Coverage A:
- Medical expenses for emergency treatment, hospitalization, surgery, physical therapy, and ongoing care
- Lost wages from missed work during recovery
- Lost earning capacity if permanent injuries prevent you from returning to your previous work
- Pain and suffering, emotional distress, and loss of enjoyment of life
- Permanent disability, disfigurement, and scarring
Property damage claims you can pursue under Coverage A:
- Repair or replacement costs for damaged property
- Loss of use of property while repairs occur
- Diminished value if property is worth less after repairs
Example of Coverage A:
A contractor accidentally causes a fire at your neighbor’s property that spreads to your home, destroying personal belongings and requiring extensive repairs. The contractor’s CGL policy should cover your property damage and temporary housing costs.
Coverage B: Personal and Advertising Injury
Coverage B compensates you for non-physical harms caused by businesses, including reputational damage and violations of privacy rights.
Personal injury claims you can pursue under Coverage B:
- False arrest, detention, or imprisonment by security guards or business personnel
- Malicious prosecution if a business wrongfully files criminal charges against you
- Wrongful eviction from rental property
- Libel, slander, or defamation of your character
- Invasion of privacy or violation of your right to privacy
Advertising injury claims under Coverage B:
- Copyright infringement if a business uses your creative work without permission in advertising
- Misappropriation of your likeness, image, or ideas in advertising
Example of Coverage B:
A security guard at a Gold Coast retail store wrongfully detains you, accusing you of shoplifting. You’re held for hours, embarrassed in front of other customers, and later cleared of wrongdoing. The store’s Coverage B would compensate you for false arrest and imprisonment.
A business posts defamatory statements about you on social media, harming your reputation. Coverage B may cover your damages for libel or slander.
Coverage C: Medical Payments
Coverage C provides immediate payment for minor medical expenses regardless of who was at fault. Limits are typically low, and coverage applies to injuries treated promptly.
Accepting medical payment benefits doesn’t prevent you from filing a larger claim under Coverage A if your injuries prove more serious than initially thought. However, the medical payments amount may be deducted from any later settlement or judgment.
Example of Coverage C:
You trip on a rug in a business office and sprain your ankle. You go to urgent care but don’t file a lawsuit. The business’s medical payments coverage reimburses your emergency room visit and follow-up appointment without requiring you to prove that the business was negligent.
What If the Business’s CGL Insurer Denies Your Claim?
CGL insurers deny claims for various reasons, some legitimate, others pretexts to avoid paying valid claims. Some common reasons insurers give for denying claims include:
Policy Exclusions
The insurer argues your claim falls under an exclusion like intentional acts, professional liability, auto liability, or pollution. Some exclusions are legitimate; others are misapplied to deny valid claims.
Late Notice
The insurer claims the business didn’t report your incident promptly, prejudicing the insurer’s ability to investigate. Illinois law protects policyholders from denial based solely on late notice unless the insurer proves actual prejudice.
No Coverage During the Policy Period
The insurer argues the injury occurred outside the policy period or, for claims-made policies, that the claim wasn’t reported during the policy term.
Dispute Over Liability
The insurer argues the business wasn’t negligent or that you were entirely or primarily at fault under Illinois comparative negligence law.
Walner Law’s experienced injury lawyers challenge wrongful coverage denials by reviewing policy language, investigating the facts, and demonstrating that coverage applies under Illinois insurance law. When insurers act in bad faith, we pursue bad-faith claims that can result in damages beyond policy limits.
What Common CGL Exclusions Affect Injured People’s Claims?
Understanding CGL exclusions helps you identify when you need to pursue other insurance policies or sue the responsible party directly for compensation.
Professional Liability Exclusion
CGL doesn’t cover claims arising from professional services, advice, or errors in professional judgment. If an architect’s design flaw causes structural failure that injures you, the architect’s CGL policy denies coverage. You must pursue the architect’s professional liability (errors and omissions) insurance instead.
Auto Liability Exclusion
CGL excludes injuries from vehicle accidents. If a business’s delivery driver strikes you while making deliveries, the business’s CGL policy denies coverage. You pursue the business’s commercial auto insurance instead.
Workers’ Compensation Exclusion
CGL excludes employee injuries, which workers’ compensation covers. If you’re injured at work, you receive workers’ comp benefits but typically can’t sue your employer. However, you can pursue third-party CGL claims against contractors, property owners, or equipment manufacturers whose negligence contributed to your injury.
Intentional Acts Exclusion
CGL covers accidents and negligence, not intentional wrongdoing. If a business employee intentionally harms you, the CGL policy denies coverage. You must sue the responsible individual directly, though the business might still face liability for negligent hiring or supervision under theories outside CGL coverage.
Pollution Exclusion
Standard CGL policies exclude pollution-related injuries through the absolute pollution exclusion. If you’re injured by hazardous-materials exposure, fuel spills, or environmental contamination, the responsible party’s CGL policy likely denies coverage. You need to pursue separate pollution liability insurance or sue the party directly.
Defective Work Exclusion in Construction Cases
CGL policies exclude damage to the contractor’s own work. This exclusion affects your claim when a contractor argues that damage resulted from their defective work (excluded) rather than from accidents during construction (covered).
How Do Additional Insured Endorsements Affect Your Claim?
Additional insured endorsements extend CGL coverage to landlords, general contractors, property owners, and others with contractual relationships to the policyholder. These endorsements may provide multiple insurance sources for your claim.
Additional-insured coverage is limited to claims “arising out of” the named insured’s work or operations. If your injury doesn’t relate to the policyholder’s work, the additional-insured endorsement doesn’t extend coverage to other parties.
Walner Law investigates all potential insurance sources, including additional-insured endorsements, to identify available coverage for your injuries.
How Does Illinois Comparative Negligence Affect CGL Claims?
Illinois follows modified comparative negligence under 735 ILCS 5/2-1116. Your damages are reduced by your percentage of fault if you’re 1% to 50% at fault. If you’re 51% or more at fault, you recover nothing.
CGL insurers use comparative negligence to reduce payouts. They may argue you weren’t watching where you were going, ignored warning signs, or contributed to the accident through your own negligence.
Walner Law counters comparative fault arguments with evidence showing the business’s negligence was the primary cause of your injuries. We gather witness statements, surveillance footage, maintenance records that show the business was aware of hazards, and expert testimony, when needed, that proves the business violated safety standards or building codes.
What If the Business Has No Insurance or Insufficient Coverage?
Some businesses operate without CGL insurance, violating lease requirements or contract obligations but leaving injured victims with limited recovery options. Others carry minimum coverage insufficient to compensate serious injuries.
Options when the business has no insurance or low limits may include:
- Suing the business directly: You can pursue a judgment against the business and collect from business assets, though many small businesses have limited assets and may dissolve or declare bankruptcy to avoid paying judgments.
- Pursuing personal assets: If the business is a sole proprietorship or the corporate veil can be pierced, you may pursue the owner’s personal assets. This can be difficult and requires proving fraud, undercapitalization, or failure to maintain corporate formalities.
- Identifying other responsible parties: Property owners, general contractors, equipment manufacturers, or other parties may share liability and carry separate insurance. Walner Law investigates potential defendants to identify additional insurance sources.
- Using your own insurance: Your homeowners, renters, or umbrella insurance may provide coverage for injuries suffered off your property. Medical payments coverage and underinsured-motorist coverage (in vehicle-related cases) may also apply.
Walner Law evaluates potential recovery sources when the at-fault business has no insurance or insufficient coverage to compensate your injuries.
FAQ About CGL Insurance Claims in Chicago
Notify the business of your injury, request their insurance information, seek immediate medical treatment, and document the accident scene with photos and witness statements. Walner Law handles CGL claims by investigating the incident, gathering evidence to prove negligence, submitting demand packages to insurers, and filing suit in the Cook County Circuit Court when insurers deny coverage or refuse fair compensation.
Ask the business directly for their insurance information after an incident. Businesses are required to report potential claims to insurers. You can also request certificates of insurance or policy information through your attorney. Walner Law investigates insurance coverage by requesting policy declarations and certificates from businesses and their insurers.
You can hire an attorney to send a formal demand letter requesting insurance information or file a lawsuit, which requires the business to disclose its insurance coverage during discovery.
Yes, the business’s CGL policy may still provide coverage if the contractor was working on behalf of the business or if the business is named as an additional insured on the contractor’s CGL policy. Walner Law investigates both the contractor’s insurance and the property owner’s or hiring business’s coverage to identify all potential sources of compensation.
You must file a personal injury lawsuit within two years from the date of injury under 735 ILCS 5/13-202, though you should notify the business and file an insurance claim as soon as possible to preserve evidence and strengthen your claim.
Legal Help When CGL Coverage Is Disputed
CGL policies should compensate legitimate injury claims, but insurers sometimes deny coverage wrongfully, dispute liability, or make low settlement offers, hoping you’ll accept less than your claim is worth. When coverage disputes arise or insurers refuse fair compensation, you need attorneys who understand both insurance law and personal injury claims.
Walner Law represents people injured by Chicago businesses, contractors, and property owners in CGL claims and underlying liability lawsuits. We review policies to determine coverage, challenge wrongful denials, pursue bad-faith claims when insurers violate duties to injured victims, and negotiate settlements that fully compensate your injuries.
If you’re injured by a business whose insurer denies your claim or refuses fair compensation, call (312) 410-8496 for a free consultation.
