Summary: Virtually any business or firm can become liable for injury to others resulting from a condition on its premises or arising out of its operations-in-progress, products, completed work, etc. Covering those exposures is the purpose of various forms of general liability insurance, as discussed elsewhere in this tab. Persons or organizations that render professional services face an additional liability exposure — their failure to use due care and the degree of skill expected of a person in a particular profession. Insurance for this exposure is known variously, and without complete consistency, as professional liability insurance, malpractice insurance, or errors and omissions liability insurance.

This article presents a general introduction to the area of professional liability insurance and the standard coverage forms that are available to insureds. The articles that follow this one discuss the particular coverage forms.

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Available forms
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