Commercial General Liability (CGL) Insurance Policy
Definition
A standard insurance policy developed by insurance-industry trade associations and designed to cover “sudden and accidental” occurrences. A CGL insurance policy typically excludes coverage for pollution unless the pollution is caused by a “sudden and accidental” event. CGL insurance policies totally exclude coverage for pollution clean-up costs that arise from governmental directives. CGLs were previously known as Comprehensive General Liability policies until 1986, when insurance companies began calling them Commercial General Liability policies.