Does Product Liability Cover Legal Fees?
Often, a covered CGL suit triggers a defense obligation, but the insurer, covered allegations, and treatment of defense costs depend on the policy.
An illustrative ISO CGL form says the insurer has a duty to defend the insured against a suit seeking covered bodily-injury or property-damage damages, and lists certain supplementary payments. That form is a specimen, not necessarily the version in your quote. The duty to defend may differ from reimbursement of your own pre-claim legal advice or a regulatory response.
Check who selects counsel, when the defense obligation applies, whether defense expenses reduce the limit, and how the deductible or self-insured retention works. Review the policy’s reporting and cooperation conditions. For a recall investigation or government inquiry, ask separately whether any specialized coverage applies. This specimen is an older ISO edition and is provided as an example of form structure, not a substitute for the policy issued to you. Ask whether defense costs sit inside or outside the stated limits.
Related Coverage
Sources
- Facts + Statistics: Product liability. Insurance Information Institute; Product liability insurance opening definition (manufacturer, distributor, or seller; defective condition causing personal injury or damage); Product recall insurance sentence. Accessed 2026-09-25.
- Product liability, recall and contamination insurance. Insurance Information Institute; Product liability opening (design/manufacture/distribute/sell; injury, property damage or death; added to GL or stand-alone); What could go wrong? (roles; directions/warnings); Covering the costs of a product recall; Contamination insurance. Accessed 2026-09-25.
- Commercial General Liability Coverage Form. ISO Properties, Inc.; specimen hosted by Hiscox; Recall exclusion p.5; Supplementary Payments pp.8–9; Section III limits p.10; V.16 and V.21 p.15, warnings/instructions continue p.16. Accessed 2026-09-25.
