Civil Liability

What Does Civil Liability Mean?

Civil liability is the legal obligation to compensate another party for causing bodily injury or property damage. It differs from criminal liability, as civil liabilities do not subject the at-fault party to criminal punishment. Instead, the responsible party is required to pay damages or monetary compensation to the party who suffered an injury as a result of their actions.

Insuranceopedia Explains Civil Liability

In terms of insurance, specific policies exist to cover civil liabilities; however, due to the broad nature of the term, these policies typically include numerous exclusions to avoid covering other types of liabilities, such as public or employer’s liability, which are addressed by different forms of liability insurance. For businesses, civil liability claims from customers and other third parties are typically handled by general liability insurance, which pays for third-party bodily injury and property damage but excludes employee injuries.

An example of civil liability occurs when a man accidentally crashes his bicycle into a parked car, causing damage to the body panels. In this case, he would be responsible for paying damages to the car owner due to his civil liability. If he fails to do so, the car owner could take him to court. If the court finds the cyclist responsible, it could compel him to pay damages. For drivers, this same kind of civil liability is what the bodily injury and property damage portions of an auto policy pay for, so figuring out how much liability insurance you need comes down to how much you could be sued for if you cause serious damage to someone else’s vehicle or injure another person.