What is Personal Injury?

Personal Injury, in the insurance context, is a specific category of liability that refers to non-physical harm to a person’s reputation, rights, or emotional well-being, as distinguished from bodily injury (physical harm). Personal injury coverage is part of the Personal and Advertising Injury coverage in your general liability policy and includes offenses such as false arrest, detention or imprisonment (wrongfully holding someone against their will), malicious prosecution (bringing a lawsuit without probable cause), wrongful eviction or entry (illegally evicting someone or entering their property), invasion of privacy, libel (written defamation), slander (spoken defamation), and defamation of character.

These are intentional torts that damage someone’s reputation, dignity, or legal rights rather than causing physical injury.

What You Need to Know

Common Personal Injury Scenarios in Restaurants:

False Arrest/Detention: If your security personnel detain someone they suspect of leaving without paying (dine-and-dash) but they have the wrong person, that person could sue you for false arrest or false imprisonment.

Defamation: If you accuse an employee of theft in front of other staff members and it turns out they were innocent, they could sue for defamation or slander.

Invasion of Privacy: If you share customer information without permission or post security camera footage online that embarrasses someone, you could face invasion of privacy claims.

Wrongful Eviction: If you evict a tenant from an apartment above your restaurant without following proper legal procedures, you could face wrongful eviction claims.

Potential Damages:

These personal injury claims can result in significant damages including emotional distress, reputational harm, lost income, and punitive damages if your conduct was particularly egregious.

Why It Matters for Restaurant Owners

While most restaurant owners think of liability insurance as covering slip-and-fall accidents and bodily injuries, your general liability policy also protects you from personal injury claims that can be surprisingly common in restaurant operations.

Coverage Details:

Your general liability policy’s Personal and Advertising Injury coverage provides defense costs and pays settlements or judgments for covered personal injury claims, but there are important exclusions (such as for criminal acts or intentional violations of law).

Prevention Through Proper Procedures:

Understanding what constitutes personal injury helps you avoid these claims through:

• Proper staff training (especially security staff and managers)
• Following legal procedures for evictions or detentions
• Avoiding public accusations
• Respecting privacy
• Consulting with attorneys before taking actions that could violate someone’s legal rights