California Property & Casualty Broker-AgentCasualty InsuranceMedium
A California business client operates a small, high-tech manufacturing company. They are purchasing a Commercial General Liability (CGL) policy. They are concerned about potential claims arising from a competitor suing them for using a slogan that allegedly infringes on the competitor's trademark. Which CGL coverage part would typically address this type of claim?
- AProducts-Completed Operations Hazard
- BCoverage B: Personal and Advertising Injury Liability
- CCoverage C: Medical Payments
- DCoverage A: Bodily Injury and Property Damage Liability
Show answer & explanationAnswer & explanation
Correct answer: B. Coverage B: Personal and Advertising Injury Liability
Coverage B of the CGL policy covers 'Personal and Advertising Injury.' This includes offenses such as libel, slander, false arrest, wrongful eviction, and infringement of copyright, slogan, or trademark in an advertisement. A claim for trademark infringement by a competitor falls directly under this coverage.
Why the other options are wrong
- A. This covers liability from products or completed work, not intellectual property infringement in advertising.
- C. Coverage C provides no-fault medical payments for injuries on premises, not advertising injury claims.
- D. Coverage A addresses physical bodily injury or property damage, not a non-physical intellectual property claim.
CGL Coverage B
Coverage B of a Commercial General Liability policy protects the insured against claims of 'personal and advertising injury,' which includes offenses like libel, slander, false arrest, and copyright/trademark infringement in advertising.
- Covers non-physical injuries.
- Includes offenses related to reputation and intellectual property in marketing.
- Distinct from bodily injury and property damage (Coverage A).
Memory trick: B is for Brands and Badmouths.