General Aggregate
The general aggregate is the most a commercial general liability policy will pay during a policy period for most covered claims combined, including bodily injury, property damage, personal and advertising injury, and medical payments, but not products-completed operations claims.
Last updated October 13, 2026
How the general aggregate works
A CGL declarations page lists several limits. The each occurrence limit is the most the policy pays for one occurrence. The general aggregate is the annual ceiling for most claims in total. IRMI explains that the limits are interrelated: payments under one can reduce another.
In the standard ISO form, the general aggregate applies to Coverage A (bodily injury and property damage, other than products-completed operations), Coverage B (personal and advertising injury), and Coverage C (medical payments). Damage to premises rented to you also counts. A separate products-completed operations aggregate applies to claims arising from your products or finished work, and those payments do not reduce the general aggregate. Defense costs generally sit outside the limits in a standard CGL, but that depends on the policy.
Some contracts, especially in construction, require a separate aggregate for each project. The ISO endorsement CG 25 03 applies a separate general aggregate to each designated construction project, in the same amount as the declarations aggregate.
Where the general aggregate sits among CGL limits
In a standard ISO-style CGL declarations page, you will typically see these limits side by side:
- Each occurrence. The most paid for all damages from one occurrence.
- General aggregate. The most paid in the policy period for most claims combined.
- Products-completed operations aggregate. A separate cap for claims from products and finished work.
- Personal and advertising injury. A limit that applies per person or organization, and that also counts toward the general aggregate.
- Damage to premises rented to you. A limit for damage to rented premises, typically for fire or similar causes.
- Medical expense. A per-person limit for no-fault medical payments, also within the general aggregate.
Exact limits, and which ones erode the general aggregate, depend on the form and endorsements.
Example
A company has a $1 million each occurrence limit and a $2 million general aggregate. It pays $700,000 on one claim, $800,000 on a second, and $500,000 on a third. After the first two claims, $500,000 of the aggregate remains. The third claim exhausts it. No further covered claims in that period are paid, even though each is below the per-occurrence limit.
What to watch for
- Erosion. Every covered payment that falls within the aggregate reduces what remains. A few mid-sized claims can exhaust it.
- The word "general" is misleading. It does not cap everything. Products-completed operations has its own aggregate.
- Contract minimums. Customers and landlords often specify each occurrence and aggregate amounts. An umbrella policy can help meet high requirements, and its terms need review.
- Per-project or per-location. Endorsements can reset the aggregate by project or location, and the applicable form matters.
General aggregate vs. related terms
- General aggregate vs. aggregate limit. Aggregate limit is the general concept of a cap on total payments in a period. The general aggregate is the specific aggregate in a CGL policy. Other policies, such as professional liability, typically have a single annual aggregate for all claims.
- General aggregate vs. products-completed operations aggregate. They are separate caps. A claim from your product after sale generally falls under the products-completed operations aggregate, not the general aggregate.
- General aggregate vs. umbrella. An umbrella policy adds limits above the underlying policy. It generally sits above the underlying limits and has its own terms, including how it responds when the underlying aggregate is used up.
- General aggregate vs. deductible or retention. A deductible or retention is the insured's share before the insurer pays. The aggregate is the insurer's ceiling on total payments.
- General aggregate vs. each occurrence. The limit of liability for one event is capped by each occurrence. The aggregate caps the total across events.
A second example: two separate aggregates
A hypothetical hardware company carries a CGL policy with a $1 million each occurrence limit, a $2 million general aggregate and a $2 million products-completed operations aggregate. These numbers are illustrative only. A visitor is injured at its warehouse and the company pays $600,000, which reduces the general aggregate. Later, a customer's claim for property damage caused by a shipped product is paid for $900,000. That payment falls under the products-completed operations aggregate, so the general aggregate remains at $1.4 million. If the company had one combined cap, the two claims would have competed for the same limit.
Questions to ask your broker or underwriter
- What are the each occurrence, general aggregate and products-completed operations aggregate limits?
- Does anything besides covered claims erode the aggregate, such as defense costs in this form?
- Is a per-project or per-location aggregate endorsement available if a contract requires it?
- Does the umbrella follow form, and how does it respond if the primary aggregate is exhausted?
- Do our contracts require limits higher than the policy provides, and are they shown on the certificate of insurance?
- Do additional insureds share our aggregate?
Common mistakes
- Thinking the aggregate resets after each claim. It applies per policy period.
- Assuming the general aggregate covers products and completed work.
- Meeting a contract's occurrence requirement but not its aggregate requirement.
- Forgetting that additional insureds and covered claims all draw from the same aggregate.
- Not asking for per-project or per-location aggregates before a contract deadline.
Why it matters for technology, AI, fintech and digital-asset companies
Technology companies often carry CGL for premises and basic operations and rely on other policies for professional and cyber risks, which have their own limits and aggregates. Enterprise contracts typically state required aggregate amounts, so it helps to know what the policy actually provides. See General Liability.
A technology company's general liability policy typically addresses premises, certain advertising injury and basic operations, while professional, cyber and AI-related exposures sit in other policies with their own limits. Hardware, robotics and device makers also have a product liability exposure, which is where the products-completed operations aggregate matters. For related background, see product liability coverage and physical AI and hardware.
See how this applies in practice: insurance requirements in enterprise contracts.
Related terms
Frequently asked questions
What is a general aggregate?
It is the dollar figure on a CGL declarations page that caps total payments for most covered claims in the policy period. Payments for bodily injury, property damage, personal and advertising injury and medical expense all draw it down, and once it is used up the policy pays no more of those claims that period.
What is the difference between each occurrence and general aggregate?
Each occurrence is the most the policy pays for a single occurrence. The general aggregate is the most it pays for all covered claims in the policy period combined. Payments under the occurrence limit also reduce the aggregate.
Does the general aggregate include defense costs?
In a standard ISO CGL, defense costs are generally paid in addition to the limits and do not reduce the aggregate. Some policies, including many professional liability forms, count defense inside the limits, so check the policy wording.
Does the general aggregate reset every year?
It applies to each policy period, so it generally starts over when a new policy period begins, typically annually. Payments in one period do not reduce the next period's aggregate, although under an occurrence form a claim is generally tied to the period in which the covered occurrence took place.
What happens when the general aggregate is used up?
The policy generally stops paying covered claims that fall under it for the rest of the policy period. An umbrella or excess policy may respond above it if the terms allow, and the insured may need to arrange more coverage, so ask your broker how your program is structured.
Can I get a per-project or per-location aggregate?
Often yes, by endorsement. Per-project and per-location aggregate endorsements give each project or location its own aggregate, in the same amount as the policy's, and are common in construction and multi-site operations. Availability and wording vary by insurer.
Do additional insureds have their own general aggregate?
Generally no. Additional insureds typically share the named insured's limits, so claims by or against any of them draw from the same aggregate. A contract may require a separate aggregate, which would need a specific endorsement.
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