Does General Liability Insurance Cover Food Poisoning Claims?

When Coverage Actually Activates

• Customer experiences documented foodborne illness
• Illness is linked to consumption at the insured restaurant
• Contamination from either restaurant preparation OR suppliers — both are covered
• Medical documentation establishes the illness
• Evidence connects the illness to the restaurant's food

Coverage applies regardless of whether the contamination originated in the restaurant's kitchen or with a supplier. The ISO standard form defines products liability as bodily injury occurring after the customer has left the premises, while on-premises illness falls under premises liability within the same policy.

What the CGL Policy Actually Pays For

• Defense costs — legal representation and investigation
• Medical expenses — treatment and hospitalization
• Settlement or judgment amounts up to policy limits
• Unlimited claim reporting time, since this is occurrence-based coverage

Key distinctions worth knowing: this is bodily injury coverage, not property damage coverage; it covers customer illness only (employee illness falls under workers compensation); the aggregate resets annually; and there's no negligence requirement since occurrence-based coverage applies automatically.

What It Does NOT Cover

Restaurants serving high-risk foods — raw seafood, undercooked meats, unpasteurized products — typically face higher premiums due to increased exposure. But even with coverage active, CGL does not pay for:

• Business interruption losses from closure
• Reputational damage from negative publicity
• Health department investigation costs
• Product recall expenses

Those exposures require separate business interruption insurance or crisis management endorsements.