Why Different Types of Insurance are Important for Beauty Businesses

Owning a salon, barbershop, or lash studio is rewarding, but brings unique risks. Handling sharp tools, chemicals, employees, and multiple clients exposes your business to accidents, damage, or unexpected costs. The right insurance protects you financially, helps maintain legal compliance, and builds trust with clients and your team.  

In this blog, we'll explore the key types of insurance every beauty business should consider to stay protected and thrive. 

General liability insurance

In the beauty industry, accidents can happen in the blink of an eye. A client might slip on a freshly mopped floor, trip over an electrical cord, or suffer an accidental chemical burn during a color treatment. A stylist could accidentally nick a client's ear while using clippers or cause a minor burn with a flat iron. Even something as simple as a spilled product could stain or damage a client's clothing, handbag, or phone. 

These situations can result in medical bills, repair costs, or even lawsuits. General liability insurance safeguards your salon, barbershop, or lash studio from expenses tied to bodily injury or property damage claims. It can help pay for a client's medical bills and your legal defense fees if needed. 

For beauty businesses with steady foot traffic and hands-on services, this coverage provides peace of mind, ensuring you won't incur the financial burden alone if an accident occurs.

Professional liability insurance

No matter how skilled or careful you are, things don't always go as planned. Professional liability insurance protects your business if a client claims your service caused them harm. It can protect you when a customer has, for example, an allergic reaction to lash glue or scalp irritation from hair dye. Even when you've followed every safety guideline, misunderstandings and accidents can still happen and defending against these claims can be costly.  

Professional liability coverage helps cover legal fees, settlements, and related expenses, while also protecting your professional reputation and your ability to keep serving clients confidently. 

Commercial property insurance

Your space and equipment are instrumental to your business. This coverage helps safeguard your physical assets like styling chairs, barber tools, mirrors, lighting, and inventory in the event of a storm, theft, fire, or vandalism. For example, if a severe storm causes roof damage or a break-in result in stolen clippers, dryers, and lash supplies, commercial property insurance helps you repair or replace what's been lost quickly and efficiently. 

Many policies also include business interruption coverage, which is especially valuable for beauty businesses that rely on steady client appointments. This coverage helps replace lost income and cover ongoing expenses, like rent and payroll, if your salon or barbershop is forced to close temporarily for repairs. With commercial property insurance in place, you can rest easy knowing that your space, your tools, and your livelihood are protected from the unexpected. 

Workers' compensation

Stylists, barbers, and lash artists spend long hours on their feet, working with their hands to deliver precise, detailed services. Over time, the constant and repetitive motion of cutting, coloring, styling, or applying lash extensions can take a toll on the body. Additionally, working closely with heat tools, chemicals, and sharp instruments exposes beauty professionals to the risk of minor wounds, such as cuts or burns. 

Workers' compensation insurance helps protect your team if they're injured or become ill as a result of their work. It pays for medical treatment, rehabilitation, and lost wages, allowing your employees to recover without added financial stress.

Business owners’ policy

A business owners' policy (BOP) combines several important coverages. This typically includes incorporating general liability, commercial property, and business interruption insurance, into a single, cost-effective plan. This is ideal for small and medium-sized beauty businesses that want broad protection without juggling multiple policies. For instance, a lash salon owner could customize a BOP to include professional liability and even cyber insurance if they store client information online. A BOP provides financial protection and operational flexibility as your business grows. 

Insure your business for the unexpected

Comprehensive insurance coverage protects everything you've worked hard to build. Each policy plays an important role in safeguarding your beauty business—helping you stay financially secure and prepared for whatever challenges come your way. Investing in coverage isn't just about protecting your bottom line; it's about showing your clients and employees that safety and professionalism always come first. 

With Mindbody Insurance, you can access affordable, customized coverage designed specifically for salons, barbershops, and lash studios. It takes the complexity out of finding policies that fit your business, so you can spend less time worrying about risk and more time growing your brand, supporting your team, and providing exceptional experiences for every client. 

Plus, Mindbody Insurance integrates directly within your Mindbody software, making it easy to manage everything in one place. Seamlessly generate Certificates of Insurance, add additional insureds, access policy documents, update coverage details, and file claims via chat, email, or phone without leaving your platform.