BusinessHABHair salon insurance: Getting insurance for your hair salon business is essential.
Hair salon businesses need to be protected against things like claims of professional malpractice, personal injury, and breach of contract.
For example, a guest suffers a burn due to an employee’s negligence with hair chemicals, or a guest claims that one of your stylists caused their hair to fall out.
We’ll help you find the most personalized and affordable coverage for your unique business.
Read on: 13 Strategies to Get the Best Hair Stylist National Insurance Card
Hair salon insurance
Best Insurance for a Hair Salon Business
General liability insurance is — generally speaking — one of the most important insurance policies for hair salons.
Some of the risks general liability insurance covers are:
- Bodily injury
- Property damage
- Medical payments
- Legal defense and judgment
- Personal and advertising injury
Some extra policies that may be useful for your hair salon business on top of general liability include:
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1. Professional liability insurance:
Due to the customer-focused nature of your salon, accidents are prone to happen. This policy ensures your business is safe from the financial consequences of customer injuries caused by your services.
2. Commercial property insurance:
Due to the expense that hair salons must invest in order to get started, it is important to protect this investment should any of these assets need to be replaced or repaired.
3. Workers’ compensation insurance:
In most states, if your business employs at least a few employees, it will be obligated by law to carry this policy.
The two principal types of insurance providers that you can acquire coverage from are:
- Traditional brick-and-mortar insurers — Such as The Hartford, Hiscox, or Nationwide.
- Online insurers — Such as Tivly or Next.
Hair salon insurance
4. Common Situations That General Liability Insurance May Cover for a Hair Salon Business
One of your hair stylists trips over a cord and cuts a customer with her shears. The customer is extremely upset by the accident and decides to file a lawsuit against your salon. Your general liability insurance would pay for your legal fees while defending your business. It would also pay for a settlement if the case is settled out of court.
A salon customer is walking into your business from the parking lot when she steps on a patch of ice outside your door. She falls and breaks her hip. She asks that your business pays for her medical treatment since the accident happened on your property. The general liability insurance policy you carry would likely cover her medical expenses.
A competing salon sues you, claiming that your new logo is too similar to theirs. The general liability insurance you have will pay for your legal fees, as well as for any payouts or settlements that are required to resolve the case.
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Other Types of Coverage Hair Salon Businesses Need
While general liability is the most important type of insurance to have, there are several other forms of coverage you should be aware of. Below are some other types of insurance all hair salon should obtain:
5. Professional Liability Insurance
As the provider of salon services, you would benefit from professional liability insurance designed specifically for your circumstances. Your policy would protect your business if one of your customers claimed that your services caused them harm and filed a lawsuit against your business. You should talk to your insurer about whether your policy protects your employees and/or independent contractors working for you. Those working for you will need to decide if they need additional protection beyond your policy.
6. Commercial Property Insurance
The various salon equipment and supplies you own, as well as your inventory of salon products, would be expensive to replace if you were to lose it in an unexpected event like a fire. A commercial property insurance policy will help cover the cost of replacing property lost in covered events. That way you can get new equipment and supplies and get back to doing business.
Hair salon insurance
7. Workers’ Compensation Insurance
If you employ the workers at your salon, then you are most likely required to carry workers’ comp insurance by the laws of your state. With a workers’ comp policy, your employees will have protection if they are injured performing work-related duties. The policy will pay for medical treatment and will help pay for lost wages while injured employees recover.
See also: 50 Ways to Save Money on Insurance: Geico Business Edition
8. Commercial Umbrella Insurance
The general liability insurance policy you carry is a good foundation for protecting your business, but it is possible to exceed your general liability policy limits in certain circumstances—like if you lose a major lawsuit and are required to pay extensive damages. With just a general liability insurance policy, you would need to find a way to pay the damages that were left after the policy ran out. But if you have an umbrella policy in such a situation, once the limits of your general liability policy are exceeded your umbrella policy will kick in and pay until its limits are reached.
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9. Additional Steps To Protect Your Business
Although it’s easy (and essential) to invest in business insurance, it shouldn’t be your only defence.
Here are several things you can do to better protect your hair salon business:
- Use legally robust contracts and other business documents. (We offer free templates for some of the most common legal forms.)
- Set up an LLC or corporation to protect your personal assets. (Visit our step-by-step guides to learn how to form an LLC or corporation in your state.)
- Stay up to date with business licensing.
- Maintain your corporate veil.
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