CGL Personal and Advertising Injury

Commercial General Liability (CGL) personal and advertising injury coverage, commonly called Coverage B, addresses a defined set of offenses that result in personal injury or advertising injury. Common examples include certain forms of false arrest, wrongful eviction, libel, slander, privacy invasion, copyright infringement in an advertisement, and use of another party’s advertising idea. The exact offense list and its exclusions are policy-specific. Coverage B does not insure every reputational, privacy, marketing, or intellectual-property dispute.

Coverage B differs from Coverage A. Coverage A generally addresses covered damages because of bodily injury or property damage caused by an occurrence. Coverage B addresses listed offenses, often without requiring the same “occurrence” analysis. The claimant must still allege an offense within the policy definition, the offense must occur within the relevant territory and policy period, the defendant must qualify as an insured, and exclusions and limits must be applied. The coverage label is only a starting point.

What the CGL calls personal and advertising injury

The standard CGL form commonly groups specified offenses under a defined phrase, such as “personal and advertising injury.” In representative ISO wording, personal injury and advertising injury are defined through enumerated offenses rather than an open-ended promise to cover any nonphysical harm. TDI’s commercial general liability guide identifies the coverage category and gives slander and false advertising as examples. Use the issued policy’s definition; carriers and editions can differ.

In common standard-form structure, the offense list may include false arrest, detention, or imprisonment; malicious prosecution; wrongful eviction, wrongful entry, or invasion of the right of private occupancy; oral or written publication that libels or slanders a person or organization or disparages goods, products, or services; oral or written publication that violates a person’s right of privacy; use of another’s advertising idea in the insured’s advertisement; and infringement of copyright, trade dress, or slogan in an advertisement. Verify exact clauses and whether a form has amended them.

“Personal injury” in the CGL is a defined insurance term. It does not simply mean physical injury to a person. A physical injury generally falls under Coverage A’s bodily-injury analysis. Coverage B personal injury refers to enumerated nonphysical tort-like offenses in the policy. A claimant can allege both physical and personal injury, but each must be evaluated under the appropriate coverage part and applicable definitions.

Offenses commonly tested

False arrest, detention, or imprisonment

A business may face an allegation that it unlawfully detained or restrained someone, such as when a store security employee holds a customer suspected of theft. Coverage analysis asks whether the policy lists the offense, whether the allegation arose from the insured’s business, whether the person acted within the scope of insured duties, and whether an exclusion applies. A lawful investigation is not automatically a covered offense, and wrongful conduct by an employee may implicate employer status and intentional-act wording.

The facts should identify who made the restraint, how long it lasted, whether the person could leave, and the claimed damages. Coverage B does not convert an intentional tort allegation into automatic coverage. The form may address expected or intended injury, knowing violation of rights, or criminal acts. Some claims can trigger a defense analysis before intent is established, but indemnity depends on facts, wording, and governing law.

Wrongful eviction or invasion of occupancy

Landlords and property managers may see allegations that they wrongfully evicted a tenant, entered leased premises without authority, or interfered with a tenant’s right to occupy property. A policy may list wrongful eviction, wrongful entry, or invasion of the right of private occupancy, but the definition may connect the offense to premises the insured owns, rents, or occupies. The lease, notice, lockout facts, named insured, and property schedule can affect coverage.

A dispute over unpaid rent or lease interpretation does not automatically qualify as a Coverage B offense. If a tenant sues for breach of contract or return of a deposit, compare the pleaded and actual facts with the listed offense and exclusions. A contract claim can include an independent wrongful-entry allegation, but the insurer and court analyze policy wording rather than accepting the claimant’s label.

Libel, slander, and disparagement

Libel generally refers to a false written or otherwise fixed defamatory statement; slander usually refers to a spoken defamatory statement. CGL policy language may include oral or written publication that libels or slanders a person or organization or disparages a person’s or organization’s goods, products, or services. Exact definitions and the jurisdiction’s law govern. The insured should preserve the complete post, recording, email, advertisement, or other publication, not just a screenshot of a short excerpt.

A claimant may call a competitor comparison “false advertising,” “trade libel,” or “defamation.” Coverage still depends on the policy’s offense definition and all exclusions. Disparagement may be narrower than general criticism; a statement about a competitor’s services is not necessarily covered merely because it is negative. Claims based on knowingly false statements, prior publication, or intellectual-property rights may encounter specific exclusions.

Privacy publication and privacy rights

Some Coverage B forms address publication that violates a person’s right of privacy. The word “publication” can be central: a written disclosure sent to others may be treated differently from a private collection or misuse of data that is never published. The policy may exclude violations of statutes that govern collecting or distributing personal information, such as privacy, telemarketing, or unsolicited communication laws. A cyber or privacy-liability form may be more directly tailored to breach-response costs and regulatory exposure.

A privacy claim can involve publication, intrusion, improper collection, identity theft, or a data breach. Those are different legal theories. Coverage B’s enumerated offense may address only some of them, and the wording may exclude certain statutory violations or electronic data. Do not assume that every cybersecurity incident is personal-and-advertising injury. Check the separate cyber policy and any CGL cyber endorsements.

Copyright, trade dress, slogan, and advertising ideas

Advertising-injury language may address infringement of copyright, trade dress, or slogan in the insured’s advertisement, or use of another’s advertising idea. The “in an advertisement” phrase can limit the grant. A copyright dispute about a product’s software, artwork embedded in merchandise, or the insured’s internal website code may not fit the same way as alleged copying in an ad campaign. Patent, trademark, trade-secret, and right-of-publicity allegations are not automatically included in the enumerated offense.

For example, a bakery uses a competitor’s slogan in a paid online campaign. The insurer would examine whether the policy includes the relevant offense, whether the material qualifies as the insured’s advertisement, whether the claimant owns the right, and whether an intellectual-property exclusion applies. A separate patent suit over a manufacturing process may involve no advertising injury at all. The name of a lawsuit does not decide the policy classification.

What counts as an advertisement?

Some forms define “advertisement” as a notice broadcast or published to the general public or a specific market segment about the insured’s goods, products, or services for the purpose of attracting customers or supporters. Definitions can include electronic communications and differ across editions. A private proposal to one buyer, an internal email, a product label, a social-media post, a website, and a press release may not all be treated identically. Match the content and audience to the form.

The policy may require the offense to occur in the course of advertising the insured’s goods or services. An employee’s private social-media post might not qualify as the insured’s advertisement, while a company-sponsored campaign may. Even a genuine advertisement does not guarantee coverage: the alleged offense, insured role, timing, and exclusions still matter. Keep records of who approved the content, the intended audience, campaign dates, and source material.

Common exclusions and boundaries

Important exclusions can include knowing violation of another’s rights, material published with knowledge of falsity, criminal acts, breach of contract, failure of goods or services to conform to statements, wrong description of prices, intellectual-property rights, insured-vs-insured claims, and employment-related practices. The precise list and carve-backs vary. One exclusion can remove an otherwise listed offense; therefore read the exclusion section after finding a plausible offense.

An intellectual-property exclusion may bar infringement claims except for copyright, trade dress, or slogan infringement in an advertisement if the policy expressly restores a narrow exception. That exception is not necessarily broad coverage for all IP claims. Likewise, an exclusion for “advertising injury” can be amended by endorsement to remove or restrict a listed offense. Review endorsements as part of the policy, not as optional background material.

Employment-related practices exclusions may apply to allegations by employees or applicants—such as discrimination, harassment, wrongful termination, or workplace humiliation—even when a complaint uses words like privacy violation or defamation. Employment Practices Liability Insurance (EPLI) is usually designed for specified employment claims. A claim against a company by a customer or competitor may be analyzed differently, but the facts and wording determine the result.

Contractual-liability and breach-of-contract exclusions can matter when a dispute centers on campaign deliverables, licensing promises, or a failed marketing agreement. A policy covering a defined tort offense does not insure the cost of fulfilling the insured’s contract or refunding the price of services. Separate the alleged injury from the contract obligations and identify any independent covered tort.

Defense and indemnity analysis

The duty to defend and duty to indemnify are distinct. A complaint can allege a listed Coverage B offense, prompting a defense analysis, while the eventual evidence may show no covered publication or establish an exclusion. Conversely, a settlement can resolve facts without a court decision on each allegation. Under Texas law, courts generally analyze the duty to defend using the policy and pleadings, subject to applicable rules and recognized exceptions; the duty to indemnify depends on actual facts. The exact legal context matters.

If a complaint includes both covered and uncovered allegations, preserve the full complaint, demand letter, publications, and factual record. The insurer may defend under a reservation of rights while investigation continues. The insured should not delete campaign material or social posts after a complaint; preserve them and consult counsel. Settlement without insurer consent can create coverage problems under policy conditions.

Practical examples

Competitor alleges a false comparison ad

A company publishes a chart saying its service is cheaper and more reliable than a named competitor. The competitor alleges false statements and product disparagement. Analyze whether the publication is an advertisement, which offense is alleged, whether the statements are false and about goods or services, and whether a knowing-falsity or pricing exclusion applies. CGL Coverage B may be relevant, but false-advertising statutes and defense costs may also require another policy.

Employee posts a private accusation

An employee uses a personal account to accuse a former coworker of misconduct. Determine whether the employee was acting within the insured’s business role, whether the post was the insured’s advertisement, whether the claimant qualifies under the policy, and whether employment-related exclusions apply. The fact that the post uses the company logo or was viewed by customers is relevant but not conclusive.

Customer alleges unauthorized disclosure

A retailer emails customer purchase details to a marketing partner without consent. The claim may involve privacy rights, statute, contract, or data-security duties. Ask whether the policy’s publication offense requires disclosure to another person, whether the allegedly violated statute is excluded, and whether cyber/privacy coverage is available. Notification, forensic, credit-monitoring, and regulatory costs may fall outside standard CGL Coverage B.

Landlord changes a lock

A landlord changes the lock while the tenant is away. The tenant alleges wrongful eviction or invasion of occupancy. Determine whether the landlord is an insured, whether the premises meet the form’s ownership or rental condition, whether the alleged conduct falls within the listed offense, and whether a known-violation or contract exclusion applies. The lease and applicable law help establish facts but do not amend the insurance contract.

Risk controls for advertising and privacy

• Use documented approval for claims about competitors, product performance, pricing, endorsements, and comparative advertising.

• Keep licenses, permissions, stock-image records, music rights, and written releases for campaign content.

• Train staff on defamation, customer-data handling, social-media accounts, and who may speak for the business.

• Preserve campaign versions, publication dates, audience settings, and the source of images or statements.

• Report demands and potential claims promptly under all relevant CGL, cyber, and EPLI policies.

• Review intellectual-property, privacy, knowing-violation, employment, and prior-publication exclusions at renewal.

In an exam question, Coverage B is a defined-offense analysis. Identify the exact offense; establish publication, advertisement, or premises facts; verify insured status and timing; then apply exclusions and limits. Sitonce’s Texas Property and Casualty exam prep course covers CGL coverage parts and exclusions.