Public liability insurance for beauty salons

In case someone gets injured or their property gets damaged as a result of your beauty salon business.

What’s typically covered by public liability insurance?

Claims against your business for:

• damage caused by you to someone else’s belongings while they’re at your beauty salon, or as a consequence of a product you’ve sold to them
• injury caused by you to someone else while they’re at your beauty salon, or as a consequence of a product you’ve sold to them
• accidental damage or injury caused by your employee (remember, if you have employees, you must have employers’ liability insurance – it’s a legal requirement)

For example:

• a customer suffers an adverse reaction to a mask you’ve applied during a facial
• you sell a beauty product that injures someone, such as a hairbrush with metal bristles that hurts the customer’s foot when they accidentally step on it at home
• your receptionist spills nail varnish over a customer’s designer handbag, so the customer is holding you responsible for the cost of a new one

Read more about public liability insurance

Employers’ liability insurance

In case your employee gets sick or injured due to the work they do for your beauty salon.

What’s typically covered by employers’ liability insurance?

Claims against your business for:

• staff members (including permanent employees, temporary staff and casual workers) suing you for damages because they suffered an injury as a result of working for you
• employees becoming ill as a result of the work they do for you

**Employers’ liability insurance is required by law if you have people working for you. Without it, you could be fined up to £2,500 a day for each employee.**

For example:

• while carrying out a waxing consultation, your trainee beauty therapist suffers an allergic reaction to a chemical in the body oil you’ve chosen to use at your salon

Buildings insurance

In case something happens to the premises where you run your beauty salon.

What’s typically covered by building insurance for salons?

• damage to the fixtures and fittings in or on your business premises, as well as the underground pipes and cables you’re responsible for as the owner of the salon
• flood, fire, accidental damage, malicious damage
• the cost of repairing damage to the structure of the building (or in the worst case scenario, rebuilding it from the ground up)

For example:

• you need to rebuild your beauty salon following a fire or flood
• you arrive at the salon one morning to see that graffiti has been sprayed all over the shop front, so you need to get it removed by a professional

What you’ll need additional cover for

• tenants’ improvements – e.g. you’ve personally arranged and paid for changes to the structure of your beauty salon, such as partition walls or wooden flooring – you’ll need to cover these things separately to insure them against damage

Read more about buildings insurance

Stock insurance

In case something happens to the products you sell or the materials you keep at your beauty salon.

What’s typically covered by stock insurance?

• the cost of replacing your stock (i.e. the beauty products you keep at your salon to sell to customers) if it’s lost, stolen or damaged
• the cost of replacing the materials you use while carrying out consultations if they’re lost, stolen or damaged

For example:

• there’s a burglary overnight at your beauty salon, and all your masks, peels, manicure and pedicure kits, lotions and nail varnishes are stolen from your display cabinet

Read more about stock insurance

Contents insurance

In case something happens to your business and office equipment.

What’s typically covered by contents insurance?

• accidental damage to the business equipment you use at your beauty salon, including furniture
• theft of your business equipment
• flood, fire, and accidental damage to your business equipment

For example:

• your tablet computer, your laptop, and the mobile phone you use for taking bookings are stolen from your beauty salon, so you need to replace the items
• your salon furniture, your product display cabinets, and the TVs in your waiting room are damaged by water after a pipe bursts in the building

Read more about business and office equipment insurance

Legal expenses insurance

In case you’re faced with legal costs in the day-to-day running of your beauty salon.

What’s typically covered by legal expenses insurance?

• the cost of resolving tax and compliance issues
• the cost of resolving disputes with salon employees
• support from experts over the phone – such as public relations guidance in times of crisis, and helplines for tax and legal advice to help you control the damage to your salon’s reputation
• legal claims and associated costs to do with property damage, nuisance or trespass

For example:

• you need help dealing with tax enquiries because HMRC has decided to investigate your tax affairs, or because your salon has been selected at random for an audit
• an employee is alleging unfair dismissal, so you need to defend your legal rights

Read more about legal expenses insurance

Personal accident insurance

In case you or anyone you’ve covered has an accident.

What’s typically covered by personal accident insurance?

• claims due to injury or death – whether at work or outside of work – for anyone you’ve named in your policy
• lost income, medical costs and hospitalisation benefit

For example:

• you trip over a customer’s bag on the floor of your salon and break your wrist as you fall
• you shut your hand in the car door and break two fingers, so you’re unable to carry out your usual beauty treatments for several weeks

Read more about personal accident insurance

Business interruption insurance

In case your beauty salon is unable to trade for a period of time.

What’s typically covered by business interruption insurance?

• loss of income following a fire, flood, theft, or accidental damage that forces you to close up for a while

For example:

• your beauty salon suffers extensive water damage due to a leak in the bathroom and you have to redecorate, so you can’t carry out any consultations for a month

Read more about business interruption insurance

Is public liability enough for third party property damage?

In some situations you may need more than public liability to cover certain kinds of property damage. Learn about buildings and contents.

Does Beauty salon insurance cover my work correctly?

Make sure you’re picking the right cover to protect you properly. It’s important to know that if you have another trade or job, you’ll need additional cover. For example, do you need to consider massage insurance or mobile beauty insurance?

Do I need cover for other types of work?

If you provide these services, make sure you’re covered:

• Hair salon insurance
• Hairdressing insurance
• Mobile hairdresser insurance
• Nail salon insurance
• Nail technician insurance
• Beauty insurance
• Beauty consultant insurance
• Makeup artist insurance
• Mobile beauty insurance
• Barber shop insurance

Other Covers

• Freelance insurance
• Consultant insurance
• Sole trader insurance
• Self employed insurance

Which public liability cover limit should I choose?

Think about the maximum possible loss your business could face in the event of a claim, and make sure you take legal fees and damages into consideration. You can choose from three levels of coverage – £1 million, £2 million, or up to £5 million.