General Liability for contractors
The foundational contractor insurance policy — covering third-party bodily injury and property damage from your operations, including the completed-operations section that protects you after the job is done. Understand it before you bind it.

What it covers
- Bodily injury to clients, visitors, and third parties
- Property damage caused by your work
- Completed-operations liability after project punch-out
- Defense costs and legal fees
- Products-completed operations coverage
- Additional-insured endorsements for GCs and project owners
Who it’s for
- Every contractor who performs physical work
- Contractors required to provide GL certificates to clients or GCs
- Contractors who want to understand their GL before binding it
- Any contractor with employees, subcontractors, or project exposure
Why CCA
- Occurrence-based GL preferred for completed-ops exposure
- No subcontractor exclusion — critical for GCs who use subs
- We explain what you're buying before you bind it
Common questions about general liability
GL covers third-party bodily injury and property damage from your operations — while you're working and after the project is complete (completed operations). It does not cover your own property, your employees (that's workers' comp), or professional errors in design or advice (that's professional liability/E&O).
The completed-operations section is a separate coverage area in your GL policy that covers claims arising after a project is finished. A structural defect discovered 18 months after punch-out, water damage from a failed roof, or an electrical fault that causes a fire later — these are completed-operations claims. Many GL policies underwrite this section with low limits or exclude it entirely.
For contractors with completed-operations exposure — which is essentially every contractor who finishes physical work — occurrence-based GL is strongly preferred. Occurrence covers claims arising from work done during the policy period, whenever the claim is filed. Claims-made only covers claims filed while the policy is active, creating tail risk when you switch carriers.
Cost depends on trade, revenue, payroll, crew size, and loss history. We quote your actual operation in about 15 minutes — never a generic ballpark from a standard commercial form.
Yes. Contractors Choice Agency is licensed in all 50 states and writes contractor programs nationwide across every trade.
Typically 15 minutes on a call. We ask about your trade, revenue, payroll, loss history, and coverage needs — then come back with real quotes from specialty contractor markets.
Often yes. We have admitted and E&S markets for contractors with prior GL claims, workers' comp losses, or difficult project types. Tell us your situation and we'll find a market.
Usually yes. A coordinated program closes gaps between policies and is typically cheaper and cleaner than separate policies from separate carriers — especially at claim time.
A.M. Best ratings reflect a carrier's financial strength and ability to pay claims. We place coverage with A-rated carriers so the coverage is there when a completed-ops claim, a workers' comp injury, or a tools theft hits.
Occurrence covers claims from work done during the policy period, whenever filed. Claims-made covers only claims filed while the policy is active. For contractors with completed-operations exposure, occurrence-based GL is strongly preferred.
Yes. Some GCs require blanket AI endorsements; others specify specific endorsement forms (CG 20 10, CG 20 37). We review your subcontract requirements and build the AI endorsements to match exactly what's required.
Trade type, annual revenue, payroll and crew size, vehicles, tools value, project types, current coverage, and loss history. The more detail, the more accurate the quote.
Yes — and you should if you provide design-build, specifications, project management, or consulting services. GL doesn't cover errors in professional services; E&O/professional liability is a separate policy that does.
Request a copy of your GL policy form and look for endorsements titled 'exclusion — work performed by subcontractors' or 'independent contractor exclusion.' If you're not sure, send us the policy and we'll review it.
Your GL policy has two aggregates: the general aggregate covers premises/operations claims; the products-completed operations aggregate covers completed-operations claims. These are separate pools — check both limits, not just the general aggregate.
Yes. Most of our carrier programs offer monthly or quarterly installment payment options. We can structure your program payments to match your project billing cycle when possible.
New ventures are insurable — often at the same rates as established operations with clean loss histories. Some carriers require more information for startups; we know which markets are new-venture friendly.
Pair it with related coverage
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Get a 15-minute quote from specialists who understand framing — GL, workers' comp, builder's risk, tools, and auto.