Hair salon public liability insurance

In case someone suffers injury or property damage as a result of your hair 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 hairdressing 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 hairdressing salon, or as a consequence of a product you’ve sold to them
• accidental damage or injury caused by your employee (remember, if you employ people at your hair salon, you must have employers’ liability insurance – it’s a legal requirement)

For example:

• a customer suffers an allergic reaction to a chemical in the dye you’ve used on their hair
• the elderly mother of one of your regular customers slips on a shampoo spillage on the floor and dislocates her knee
• your salon assistant spills coffee over a customer’s cashmere scarf, and they’re holding you responsible for the cost of a replacement
• a customer reacts badly to a bottle of body lotion you’ve sold them

Read more about public liability insurance

Employers’ liability insurance

In case your employee gets sick or injured as a result of working for your hair salon.

What’s typically covered by employers’ liability insurance?

Claims against your business for:

• staff members (including temps as well as permanent employees) suffering 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:

• your trainee hairdresser has an allergic reaction after washing the highlight foils out of a customer’s hair
• your receptionist alleges that his sciatica has worsened due to being on his feet all day, so he’s suing you for damages

Building insurance

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

What’s typically covered by building insurance?

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

For example:

• water damage from a burst pipe means you need to rebuild the interior of your salon
• graffiti is sprayed all over the front of your salon overnight, so you need to get it professionally cleaned

What you’ll need additional cover for

• any changes to the structure of your hair salon that you’ve arranged and paid for yourself, such as partition walls or wooden flooring – these are called “tenants’ improvements”, and you’ll need to cover them separately

Read more about buildings 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 hair salon, including the furniture
• theft of your business equipment
• flood, fire, and accidental damage to your business equipment

For example:

• the tablet, laptop, and mobile phone that your salon uses for taking bookings are stolen in a break-in, so you need to replace the items
• your designer sofas, reception counter, hair product display cabinets and sound system are destroyed in a fire

Read more about business contents insurance

Stock insurance

In case something happens to the hair products you sell or the materials you keep in stock.

What’s typically covered by stock insurance?

• the cost of replacing your stock (i.e. the hair products you keep at your salon to sell to customers) if it’s lost, stolen or damaged – either at your salon or in transit
• the cost of replacing the materials you need for carrying out hair appointments if they’re lost, stolen or damaged

For example:

• a fire destroys the hair colouring liquids and bleach powder that you store in a cupboard at the back of the salon, so you need to buy more
• there’s a burglary overnight at your hair salon, and your shampoos, conditions, hair masks and styling products are stolen from your display cabinet

Read more about stock insurance

Legal expenses insurance

In case you’re faced with legal costs in the day-to-day running of your hair 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 relevant experts – this may include telephone helplines for tax and legal advice, and crisis PR support to help you rebuild trust in your salon’s brand reputation
• property damage, nuisance, or trespass, resulting in legal claims and associated costs that are yours to bear

For example:

• you’ve let an employee go and they’re accusing you of unfair dismissal, so you need a lawyer to help you defend your position
• your hair salon is being investigated for suspected tax evasion, and you need an accountant to assist you with the enquiries
• you’ve been selected randomly for an audit by HMRC, and you need an accountant to help you (and any other directors) with the enquiries into your salon business and into your personal tax affairs

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 (both at work and outside of work) for any person who you’ve named in your policy
• lost income, medical costs, and hospitalisation benefit

For example:

• you trip over a customer’s bag in the salon and break your wrist, leaving you unable to do any haircutting for over a month
• your employee shuts their hand in the car door on the way into work
• your assistant gets food poisoning at an event at the weekend

Read more about personal accident insurance

Business interruption insurance

In case your hair 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 hair salon is destroyed in a fire and you have to rebuild and redecorate the interior, so you can’t fulfil any bookings 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.

Which type of workers do I need insurance for?

Employers’ liability insurance is a legal requirement if you employ people.

If you have people working for you, including bona fide subcontractors (BFSC), labour-only subcontractors (LOSC), part-timers, or full-time staff, employers’ liability insurance is required by law.

Read on for our simplified guide to the difference between labour-only subcontractors and bona fide subcontractors.

Does hair 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 hairdressing insurance or mobile beauty insurance?

Do I need cover for other types of work?

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

• Hairdresser insurance
• Barber insurance
• Mobile hairdresser insurance
• Beauty salon insurance
• Beauty insurance
• Makeup artist insurance
• Nail technician 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 two levels of coverage – £2 million or £5 million.