Beauty Insurance: Beauty Business Insurance

The beauty and personal care industry is where businesses and professionals are exposed to many risks.  And as a protection, carriers underwrite beauty insurance. Read to know what this is, how much it costs, and the best companies. To make your time more worthwhile, we’ll also discuss the different types of beauty industry insurance plans.

What is Beauty Insurance?

Carriers underwrite beauty insurance for businesses and professions in the personal care and beauty industry. Through it, a policyholder can enjoy the protection of different policies that cater to lawsuits, business property damage, and other exposures. 

Businesses eligible to get beauty insurance are as follows:

• Tanning salon

• Hair salon 

• Barber shop

• Massage studio

• Spa

• Beauty clinic

• Bodywork clinic

In addition, this specialized insurance product is also available if you’re working as a:

• Beautician

• Cosmetologist

• Makeup artist

• Esthetician

• Massage therapist

• Hairstylist

Beauty Liability Insurance

General liability insurance for beauty business provides protection against personal injury claims or property damage claims customers, visitors, and other third parties file. 

In other words,  this insurance comes in handy when your beauty business inflicts third parties with injuries or property damage. 

There are many situations where your beauty business can cause injuries or property damage. Here are a few examples:

• A particular procedure was improperly done and resulted in wounds, muscle pains, dislocation, and other injuries to a client

• Slip and fall accidents caused by poorly minded business premises, which result in injuries or property damage

• Equipment used to provide a beauty service goes haywire and injures a client or damages their property 

The coverage of beauty liability insurance is very broad. Nonetheless, we can summarize the primary functions of general liability insurance into the following:

• Cover medical treatment or funeral expenses if your beauty business is liable for the injuries sustained by a third party who filed a claim

• Reimburse the losses of a third party who holds your beauty business liable for his or her damaged property

• Take care of attorney fees, investigation fees, court fees, judgments, and other defense costs if the claim is taken to court 

So how much insurance money does general liability provide for you to cover a claim? Limits differ between companies. But for most beauty businesses, general liability insurance has a $1 million-$3 million per occurrence with a $2 million-$4 million aggregate. Don’t forget that deductibles might apply. 

As we said earlier, general liability insurance is very broad. Why is this anyway? The reason is that you can include additional coverages to the terms of general liability insurance such as:

• Advertising injury coverage-With advertising injury coverage included, your beauty business can use general liability insurance to cover settlements and defense costs if a third party files a claim for slander, libel, and copyright infringement

• Rented premises liability coverage-Add rented premises liability coverage to general liability insurance to cover indemnification to the owner if a fire damages a space or building your beauty business is renting

• Non-owned/hired auto liability coverage-By adding non-owned/hired auto liability coverage to its language, general liability insurance can cover expenses if an employee causes an accident while using his vehicle to run an errand for your beauty business. It also covers the cost of auto accidents caused by rented or leased vehicles

The advertising injury coverage of your beauty business has a $100,000-$500,000 per occurrence limit with a $1 million aggregate. Rented premises liability coverage has a $1 million-$2 million per occurrence limit. 

Beauty Business General Liability Insurance Exclusions 

General liability insurance doesn’t cover claims for bodily injuries or property damage filed by full-time employees, part-time employees, business partners, and others. 

You can’t use general liability insurance to cover losses if your beauty business’s property is damaged or destroyed. 

Another thing, your beauty business’s liability for auto accidents its commercial vehicle causes is excluded in the terms of general liability insurance. 

Professional Liability Insurance for Beauty Businesses 

Professional liability insurance is another policy that protects your beauty business against lawsuits customers file. It provides protection when a client files a claim because your beauty business committed:

• Misrepresentation

• Violation of good faith

• Violation of fair dealing

• Negligence

• Inaccurate advice

The per occurrence limit of professional liability insurance is $1 million-$2 million. It has a $2 million aggregate limit. 

But note that if your beauty business provides highly perilous services (e.g. surgery, tanning, microblading, etc.), beauty insurance companies will allow you to get professional liability insurance offering $5 million-$10 million coverage. 

Product Liability Insurance for Beauty Businesses 

Consider purchasing product liability insurance if your beauty business generates money by selling cosmetics and other similar products to customers. 

Your beauty business is liable to cover compensation for pain and suffering if a customer experiences allergic reactions after using the products of your beauty business. 

And so, insurance companies underwrite product liability insurance that allows you to satisfy such a responsibility without losing money. The following costs are covered by this type of beauty treatment insurance:

• Product recall

• Compensation for injuries (and even property damage) caused by the product of your beauty business

• Defense costs

The product liability insurance of beauty businesses has a $2 million per occurrence limit with a $3 million aggregate. Note that you can get this as an add-on to general liability insurance. 

Commercial Property Insurance for Beauty Businesses

If your beauty business is a spa, salon, or bodywork clinic, a commercial building and pieces of beauty equipment will surely be a part of your investment.

In connection, consider getting commercial property insurance to have a countermeasure in case something happens to such business properties.

Commercial property insurance will allow you to recoup lost investments if your beauty business’s building is damaged or destroyed by:

• Fire

• Theft

• Vandalism

• Riot

• Civil commotion

• Aircraft

• Vehicle

• Volcanic action

• Weather

• Sprinkler leakage

• Sinkhole collapse

Refunds for your losses is also provided by commercial property insurance if the perils above cause the damage or loss of your beauty business’s equipment such as:

• Chairs

• Hair dryers

• Tanning machines

• Jacuzzis

• Hair steamers

• Beauty beds

• Facial machines

• Trolleys

• Electric massage beds

• And more

Before we discuss the amount of coverage you can get from commercial property insurance, you must understand the terms replacement cost and actual cash value.

Replacement cost and actual cash value are two types of commercial property insurance policies available.

A replacement cost commercial property insurance refunds your financial losses as per the original value of the covered property. On the other hand, actual cash value commercial property insurance reimburses lost capital based on the depreciated value of the property it covers.

The amount of coverage you can get from commercial property insurance depends on which particular carrier you decide to work with.

You’ll find insurance companies that only allow you to get $10,000-$25,000 building and contents coverage from the policy. Others are more generous and allow commercial property insurance to offer more than $1 million.

Beauty Business Commercial Property Insurance Exclusions

Your beauty business can’t use commercial property insurance to recover losses if its building and equipment got lost or damaged due to war, terrorism, mudslides, earthquakes, and floods. Nonetheless, you can get endorsements to include these perils in the policy’s language.

Another thing to remember is that commercial property insurance doesn’t provide coverage if business property damage or loss is intentionally caused by an employee or you yourself.

Also, commercial property insurance doesn’t cover equipment that got damaged or lost while being shipped. You can’t also use the policy to recover the monetary value of the properties of other persons that got damaged or lost while in your beauty business’s custody.

Beauty Business Workers Compensation Insurance

Workers compensation insurance is handy if your business employs one or more full-time or part-time employees. This policy covers the following costs if an employee sustains a work-related injury or disease.

• Ambulance fees/medical treatment-Workers compensation allows you to cover private EMT fees and hospital emergency treatment fees if an employee sustains an injury or experiences the onset of a work-related injury at the workplace

• Hospitalization-Workers compensation insurance covers bills if an employee of your beauty business needs to stay in the hospital to receive intensive medical attention for a work-related injury or disease

• Medication-Workers compensation insurance will cover expenses if your employee needs a specific medicine for a work-related injury or disease

• Rehabilitation-Workers compensation insurance allows your beauty business to cover the rehabilitation of an employee who sustains permanent or temporary impairment due to a work-related injury or disease

• Lost wages-Workers compensation insurance covers lost wages if your employee needs to take a break because of a work-related injury or disease. Compensation for lost wages is a weekly allowance equal to two-thirds or 67% of the average weekly wage

• Death benefits-If your beauty business’s employee dies, workers compensation insurance will pay for funeral costs and provide an allowance to dependents

What Will Happen If Your Beauty Business Doesn’t Get Workers Compensation Insurance?

Your beauty business will face hefty fines and penalties if it doesn’t get workers compensation insurance for employees. Punishment depends on which state you’re in. But usually, authorities impose an accumulating fine, a stop-hold order, or a criminal charge to violators.

Beauty Business Commercial Auto Insurance

Commercial auto insurance is available as an optional policy in beauty insurance programs. You need this if your beauty business has a commercial vehicle registered under its name.

There are several types of protection you can get from commercial auto insurance. Each caters to specific undesirable situations that can happen while your beauty business is utilizing its commercial vehicle. Namely, these are:

• Auto liability coverage-Your beauty business’s commercial vehicle will cause an accident, and auto liability coverage can wrap things up. It will pay for the medical treatment or property damage of the victims. Plus, if someone files a lawsuit, auto liability coverage will also take care of defense costs

• Physical damage coverage-Available as a comprehensive and collision policy, physical damage coverage will cover costs if your beauty business’s vehicle needs to be fixed. Collision physical damage coverage pays for expenses if the commercial vehicle got damaged because of a crash. On the other hand, comprehensive physical damage coverage shoulders cost if the damage is caused by fire, theft, vandalism, and other covered perils

• Uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage-Another driver can cause an accident and your beauty business’s commercial vehicle might get involved. If the other driver doesn’t have enough insurance or is uninsured and can’t take care of indemnification, underinsured/uninsured motorist coverage covers your losses instead

• Medical payments coverage-Medical payments coverage will pay medical or funeral expenses of the driver and passengers in case of an accident. Coverage applies regardless if the accident was your commercial vehicle’s fault or not

Business Interruption Insurance for Beauty Businesses

Business interruption insurance covers your beauty business’s lost income. If you need to stop business operations, this insurance will supplement lost revenues and enable you to cover payroll, bills, taxes, loans, etc.

Self Employed Beauty Insurance

Insurance companies sell self employed beauty insurance in the form of a short-term general liability policy that lasts for hours, days, weeks, or months. A policyholder also has the liberty to upgrade this freelance beauty insurance into an annual policy. The coverage limit for bodily injuries or property damage is $1 million-$2 million.

Holistic Beauty Insurance

Holistic beauty insurance is for salons and other beauty establishments that provide a wide array of services to clients. Inclusions are general liability, commercial property, workers compensation, and more.

Specialized Types of Insurance Plans for Beauty Businesses

Insurance companies underwrite specialized insurance plans for specific types of beauty businesses. Here’s a quick discussion of each.

Beauty Salon Insurance

Compared to freelance beauty insurance, beauty salon insurance is often a lot more expensive. This is because beauty salons tend to see far more people over the course of a month or a year, increasing the chances that you may have to file a claim with your insurer and increasing their risk.

Tanning Salon Insurance

Out of all forms of beauty and aesthetics insurance, tanning salon insurance tends to be more expensive because of the exposure to UV lights that your clients have to endure. This is due to the risk of skin cancer associated with UV exposure, which means that many insurers refuse to cover these businesses.

Barber Shop Insurance

Hair and beauty insurance quotes for barber shops tend to be a little bit higher than in other industries because of the sharp objects involved in most cases. While it’s rare that someone ends up getting injured at a barber shop, insurance companies will still charge a bit more for barber shop insurance.

Spa Insurance

Spa insurance is usually a little pricey because of the slick surfaces that are relatively common in spas. Many spas have trouble with customers and workers slipping and falling, which often leads to bodily injury suits. This means that insurance carriers don’t hesitate to charge a bit extra on their premiums.

Nail Salon Insurance

Nail salon insurance is a coverage for manicurists and other similar professionals. Whether dealing with manicures or acrylic nails, insurance companies usually won’t charge too much for nail salon insurance if you operate such a business.

Cosmetology Insurance

Cosmetology insurance is usually a little more expensive because of how much training the beauty professional performing the procedure needs. Because of the risk of an unqualified worker making a mistake, insurance companies charge slightly higher premiums for cosmetology coverage.

Bodywork Insurance

Bodywork insurance is also pretty pricey due to the hands-on nature of bodywork procedures, increasing the chances of someone filing a lawsuit or pressing charges. As we’ve established, a higher risk of a client getting charged or sued over their job means that insurance carriers will charge more for coverage, and this is the case for bodywork coverage.

Salon Insurance

There are insurance companies that include all types of salons in their underwriting appetite. They sell a salon insurance plan offering all the business insurance policies salons need. Those who work for salons are offered salon chair and booth rental insurance.

Esthetician Insurance

The same circumstances apply for esthetician insurance. Since estheticians need to be more qualified than in many other fields (in the eyes of insurance companies), their insurance premiums are usually higher. Thankfully, it’s usually only a difference of a couple dollars per month.

Microblading Insurance

Microblading insurance is a specialized coverage for microblading clinics and specialists, inclusions are general liability, workers compensation, commercial property, and professional liability insurance.

Makeup Artist Insurance

Insurance companies underwrite makeup artist insurance for wedding makeup artists, fashion makeup artists, cinema makeup artists, and more. Inclusions are professional liability, general liability, commercial property, public liability, and workers' compensation insurance.

Beauty Therapist Insurance

Beauty therapist insurance is a specialized coverage for beauticians that offers general liability, professional liability, product liability, and workers' compensation insurance. This is also available to other professionals in the beauty industry who are not eligible for the insurance plans above.

Massage Therapist Insurance

Massage therapist insurance is a coverage that caters to the needs of massage clinics and massage professionals. Its primary components are general liability and professional liability insurance.

Beauty Business Insurance Cost

Beauty insurance costs aren't the same for all customers. Beauty insurance companies take a lot of factors into account when determining rates such as location, business experience, business size, claims history, and more. 

On average, a $1 million general liability insurance for beauty businesses costs $36.12 per month or $433.34 per year. Take a look at the table below if you want to know the individual pricing of the best companies. 

To get the best beauty insurance, consider comparing the rates of different companies. Start comparing cheap beauty insurance quotes by clicking the “Get Quotes” button on this page. 

There are many things you can do so lessen rates. The first is to pay high deductibles. Second, you can bundle policies to be eligible for a discount. Finally,  don’t pay monthly beauty insurance but pay premiums in one go.