Hairdresser and Barber Insurance
Because protection for your business is one thing you don't want to cut.
Written by
Christine Lacagnina has written thousands of insurance-based articles for TrustedChoice.com by authoring consumable, understandable content.
Reviewed by
Cara Carlone is a licensed P&C agent with 20 years of experience. She has her P&C license in RI and TX and holds CPCU, API, and AINS designations.
Hairdressers and barbers face all kinds of risks on a daily basis, just like all other types of businesses. If you’re a hairstylist or barber, your clients depend on you to help them look and feel their best.
But no matter how careful you may be, accidents can happen. You could be held liable for a customer lawsuit, your products could get stolen, or your business may face a temporary closure due to fire damage. All of these threats could cost your barbershop thousands of dollars if you lack the proper coverage.
Fortunately, you can protect your assets, savings, and revenue with the right barber insurance. Independent insurance agents can help you find the right coverage for your business. But first, here's a closer look at hairdressers and barbers insurance.
What Is Barber Insurance?
Barber insurance, also known as hair and beauty salon insurance, exists to protect hair and beauty salons as well as barbershops and their owners. Packages are made up of a special form of business insurance with a unique hair salon or barbershop twist.
Common hazards ranging from fire damage to legal issues are accounted for in your insurance policy. Hair salon and barbershop insurance conveniently combines several necessary coverages together in one package.
What Are the Best Barber Insurance Companies?
Hairstylist and barber insurance is available from many different insurance companies, and the best way to find the right carrier for you is through working with an independent insurance agent. Independent insurance agents have helped all types of customers, including those in search of barber insurance. They know which insurance companies to recommend to meet your needs, and can provide informed suggestions based on company reliability, rates, and more.
While many insurance companies could underwrite a barber insurance policy for you, finding coverage could also depend on the area you live in. Here are a few of our top picks for hairstylist and barber coverage.
| Best Barber Insurance Companies | Overall Carrier Star Rating |
| Central Insurance |
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| Stillwater Insurance |
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| Liberty Mutual |
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| West Bend Mutual |
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| Nationwide |
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| Westfield |
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| State Auto |
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| Hiscox |
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Who Needs Barber Insurance?
Any professional who works in the hair styling industry likely needs barber insurance. However, other beauty professions can also benefit from having similar coverage. If you work as any of the following, you might need barber insurance:
- Barber
- Hairstylist
- Beautician
- Cosmetologist
- Esthetician
An independent insurance agent can help you find the right coverage for your hair styling or beauty business.
Why Do I Need Barber Insurance?
You work closely with your clients to help them achieve the look they want. Occasionally, a client may ask for a specific hairstyle and end up hating the results. In rare cases, a truly dissatisfied client may file a lawsuit against you for emotional distress. Even if the court determines you’re not at fault, your legal defense costs alone could be financially devastating.
On top of just getting a bad cut, many of the tools you use have the potential to cause injury to clients, like curling irons, scissors or hair shears, hot wax, and chemical treatments. A slip of the hand or a product malfunction could lead to an accidental injury and a claim against you. Having liability protection against bodily injury and personal property damage claims is critical for your business's financial well-being.
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Liability Coverage for Barbers and Hairstylists
Lawsuits can come from a number of places you wouldn’t expect and cost you your savings, assets, and future earnings. But you can help protect your financial future with the right liability coverage. Just a few hundred dollars per year for a comprehensive insurance policy could end up saving you much more in the long run.
As a barber, your insurance policy should likely include:
- Professional liability insurance: Covers emotional distress or personal injury lawsuits filed against you due to your acts as a professional. It provides financial help for settlement costs, damages, court fees, and your legal defense up to the limits of your policy.
- General liability insurance: Covers slips, falls, and other types of accidents that occur in your workspace, the client's home, or any other place where you serve your customers. It pays for the injured person’s medical expenses, personal property damage, and pain and suffering up to your policy limits, with additional coverage for legal defense.
- Product liability insurance: Protects you from the cost of lawsuits involving damage and injuries caused by products you sell to customers. This coverage protects you whether your business manufactures the products or just sells them.
- Legal liability insurance: Pays the costs of accidental damage to the salon or spa where you rent space for your hairdresser business.
An independent insurance agent can help make sure you get set up with all the coverage you need as a hairdresser or barber.
What Else Does Barber Insurance Cover?
Like hairdressers, barbers cut hair and, in some cases, color and style it. But unlike hairdressers, barbers are typically licensed to use a razor and provide shaving and beard grooming services.
Barbers also sometimes recommend chemical hair and scalp treatments to their clients. All of these services can lead to serious accidental injury.
Hairdressers and barbers certainly need ample liability protection, but there are still other aspects of their businesses that need coverage. Other forms of insurance hairdressers and barbers require include:
- Workers' compensation insurance: This covers medical bills and more for employees who get injured or ill due to their job or work environment. Coverage is mandatory in most states if you have employees.
- Commercial property insurance: This protects your business's building, tools, and inventory against many common threats like fire damage, theft, vandalism, and more.
- Cyber liability insurance protects your hair salon in case its computer system is compromised. After a data breach or other attack, customers' or staff’s sensitive data may be stolen and sold, leading to serious financial consequences for your business, including possible lawsuits.
- Product recall coverage: This coverage reimburses fees relating to a bad batch of dyes or other products that get recalled. Coverage can also reimburse you for public relations fees related to the recall to help protect your business’s reputation.
- Business income coverage: This coverage reimburses you for lost wages and revenue if your business must temporarily be shut down due to a covered disaster.
- Commercial umbrella coverage: If your hairdresser or barber business is especially large, turns over a lot of business, and stands to face even costlier lawsuits, you may want to look into commercial umbrella insurance. These policies extend the liability limits provided by your underlying policy, and are often highly affordable, too.
An independent insurance agent can help review your specific coverage needs, and ensure that you get equipped with all the policies necessary to maintain smooth operations for years to come.
Coverage for Your Home-Based Hair Care Business
If you also, or only, provide hair beautifying services out of your home, you could be exposing yourself to a number of other risks. If you depend on your homeowners insurance to cover your in-home hairdresser or barber business, your finances and home could be at risk. So, if a client accidentally slips on your front steps and suffers an injury after a haircut, your homeowners insurance may not protect you from any resulting lawsuits.
Usually, you can purchase in-home business insurance as an inexpensive rider to your homeowners policy, or as a separate policy. Your in-home business policy would cover:
- Inventory
- General liability for slips, falls, and other accidents on-site
- Damage or loss to your business property and equipment
An independent insurance agent can help you add all the coverage you need to protect a home-based hairstyling business.
Barber Insurance Exclusions
While hairdressers and barbers insurance provides a lot of important coverage for your business, it also comes with certain exclusions. Typically, barber insurance won't cover any of the following:
- Breakdown of major appliances
- Temperature changes
- Inexplicably lost inventory
- Robbery
- Pollution damage
- Routine maintenance fees
- Earthquake damage
- Nuclear reaction and war
- Dishonest acts by staff
- Flood damage
If your business is located in a state that’s prone to flooding, you’re likely to want to purchase a separate flood insurance policy. Or you might even already be required to have it by your business’s mortgage lender. Your independent insurance agent can provide you with more information about finding coverage.
How Much Does Barber Insurance Cost?
The cost of your policy may vary based on several factors, like your business's exact location, number of employees, coverages needed, and your annual revenue. On average, insurance for salons, barbershops, etc., starts at about $9.99 monthly, or $96 annually.
However, larger businesses with large client turnouts will likely pay a lot more for coverage. Your independent insurance agent can help provide exact figures and quotes for your area.
Save on Business Insurance
Our independent agents shop around to find you the best coverage.
Why Work with an Independent Insurance Agent?
When it comes to finding the right barber insurance, no one's better equipped to help than a local independent insurance agent. These agents have access to multiple insurance companies, so they're free to shop and compare policies and rates for you. They'll get you set up with a policy that provides the best blend of coverage and cost. And down the road, your agent can help file business insurance claims for you and update your policy as necessary.
FAQs About Barber Insurance
All salons need commercial property coverage, business income coverage, and various forms of liability protection. Whatever type of salon or spa you run, you'll still probably want to consider professional liability, general liability, cyber liability, and product liability coverage.
Yes, you still need insurance if you run your business out of your home. Standard homeowners insurance excludes business liability claims, so if you run any type of business out of your home, even part-time, it's imperative to have separate coverage. You'll want to at least look into a business owners policy if your hairdresser or barbershop business is home-based.
Yes, because standard personal auto insurance policies exclude business use of your vehicle. If you run a mobile hairdresser business or make deliveries, you'll need a commercial auto policy.
Booth renters are technically small business owners, and are usually 1099 employees or independent contractors. Owners of hairdresser and barbershop businesses need to ensure that booth renters on their property are classified as independent contractors for tax purposes.
It's certainly a good coverage to consider for your business. Your drains can easily get clogged by hair and product buildup, which can lead to flooding and other water damage, or busted piping. An independent insurance agent can help you add a sewer backup endorsement to your business insurance policy.
https://www.insurebodywork.com/barber-insurance