Business insurance terms, explained

What these terms mean when they appear on business insurance. Each definition describes the term itself, not what to do about it.

Building coverage: Commercial property coverage for the insured building, up to the limit shown in the policy.
Business personal property: Commercial property coverage for items the business owns or uses, such as furniture, equipment, inventory, and supplies.
Claim: A request you make to your insurance company to pay for a covered loss.
Coinsurance: A commercial property condition that can reduce a payment when the insured value is below the percentage stated in the policy.
Coverage: A part of your policy that pays for a specific kind of loss, up to a limit.
Deductible: The amount you pay out of your own pocket on a claim before your insurance starts paying.
Employers liability: Coverage for certain employee injury or illness lawsuits that fall outside workers compensation benefits, subject to stated limits.
Endorsement: An add-on or change to your policy that adds, removes, or adjusts coverage. Also called a rider.
Exclusion: Something your policy specifically does not cover.
General liability aggregate limit: The most the policy will pay for covered general liability during the policy period, even when more than one occurrence takes place.
General liability per-occurrence limit: The most the policy will pay for covered general liability arising from one occurrence, subject to the policy terms and aggregate limit.
In force: Active and providing coverage, because the policy is current and paid.
Insured: A person or thing your policy protects.
Liability: Coverage that pays for injury or damage you are responsible for causing to someone else.
Limit: The most your policy will pay for a covered loss.
Out-of-pocket: Money you pay yourself, that your insurance does not cover.
Policyholder: The person who owns the insurance policy.
Premium: The amount you pay for your insurance, usually each month or once a year.
Sub-limit: A smaller, separate cap inside a coverage that applies to certain items or losses.
Sublimit: A smaller, separate cap inside a coverage that applies to certain items or losses.
Underwriting: How an insurer decides whether to cover you and at what price, based on the risk.
Workers compensation: Coverage for benefits required by law when an employee has a covered work-related injury or illness.

Other policy types

These are general definitions. Your own policy is what governs your coverage, and the same term can be defined differently from one policy to the next. Read your own policy to see what these terms say in your document, cited to the page.