General Liability Insurance for Contractors

General liability insurance covers third-party claims for bodily injury, property damage, and personal or advertising injury. For example, if a visitor is injured on your job site or you accidentally damage a client's property during work, GL pays for legal defense, settlements, and medical costs. Most policies also include Products and Completed Operations coverage for claims arising after work is finished.

For contractors, GL insurance specifically covers bodily injury to third parties on the job site, damage to a client's property caused by your work, and claims arising from completed projects — known as Completed Operations. It also covers personal injury claims like libel or slander. It does not cover your own tools, employee injuries (workers' comp handles that), or professional errors.

Contractor GL premiums vary based on trade type, annual revenue, number of employees, claims history, and coverage limits. Specialty or high-risk trades typically pay more than general handyman or painting contractors. Soma's one-application process compares quotes across hundreds of carriers so you get the most competitive rate for your specific operation without sacrificing coverage quality.

Most contractors need a minimum of $1 million per occurrence and $2 million aggregate. However, general contractors, commercial project contractors, and those working on government or municipal contracts often require higher limits — $2 million per occurrence or $5 million aggregate. Soma's Risk Management Team reviews your contracts and helps you select limits that satisfy project and lender requirements.

In most U.S. states, GL insurance is legally required to obtain or renew a contractor's license. Beyond licensing, virtually all commercial clients, general contractors, and project owners require proof of GL before allowing work to begin. Many contracts specify minimum coverage limits and require the client to be named as an additional insured on the policy.

Your GL policy covers your own operations but typically does not automatically extend to subcontractors. Most policies exclude claims arising from work performed by uninsured subs. You can protect yourself by requiring all subcontractors to carry their own GL and naming you as additional insured, or by purchasing a policy endorsement that covers subcontractor operations you supervise.

Soma's streamlined process is built for speed — most contractor GL quotes are turned around same-day or within 24 hours through a single application. Our Risk Management Team works directly with specialty carriers including Chubb, Liberty Mutual, and Kinsale to bind coverage fast, even for complex trades, prior claims histories, or businesses that standard brokers have declined.

Yes — this is Soma's core specialty. We work with surplus lines and specialty carriers who have deep appetite for hard-to-place contractor risks, including high-risk trades, contractors with prior claims, newer businesses without established loss history, and specialty operations outside standard market appetite. Where conventional brokers stop, Soma's carrier relationships allow us to place coverage competitively.