Barber Insurance

A straight razor isn’t the only danger in a barber shop. Wet floors, sharp scissors and electric trimmers can all act as hazards to your clients, your employees and yourself.

Fortunately, there is no need to leave yourself financially exposed to these risks. Barber insurance can help cover the legal fees that may arise from a claim made against your business, as well as any compensation costs you might incur.

» MORE: How To Start A Beauty Business

What is barber insurance?

A bad slip, an accidental trip, or a mistaken snip are all potential risks when working as a barber.

However, just because a risk exists, it doesn’t mean you have to swallow the costs if a worst-case scenario arises. Barber insurance can provide business owners with financial cover if something happens to a client, an employee, or even yourself.

It’s important to understand that barber insurance isn’t one type of insurance itself, but rather an umbrella term for a collection of policies that could be appropriate for your profession. And this flexibility means it can accommodate the specific needs of your exact business.

General barber insurance

At the core of most barber insurance packages will be public liability insurance. This is designed to cover you if a third party – for example, a client – is injured or has their property damaged due to your business activities.

What this likely won’t cover you for, however, is if a client were to become ill or injured due to a treatment you have carried out. To be covered in this instance, you would need to have professional treatment liability insurance. You may be required to have the correct qualifications for each treatment for your insurance to be valid.

As a barber, you may also sell products to your clients. If you do, you may want to consider product liability insurance. This is because a claim can still be made against you if someone is injured or has their property damaged by a product you supply, even if you have not manufactured it yourself.

Of course, barber insurance isn’t just there to protect your clients. If your equipment is stolen, lost or accidentally damaged, tool and equipment insurance can help pay for a replacement.

Meanwhile, personal accident cover can help with lost income if you are injured or fall ill, and are subsequently unable to work, whether the accident happened at work or elsewhere.

» MORE: Compare Business Insurance

Barber shop insurance

If your small business has any employees – for example, if you own a barber shop and hire staff – you are legally required to take out an employers’ liability insurance policy worth at least £5 million from an authorised insurer.

The exception to this rule is if your employees are all family members, or are based abroad. This policy will cover the costs and legal fees if an employee is injured or falls ill due to your business activities.

Your barber shop may also benefit from business buildings and contents insurance, which can be purchased together or separately, as well as business interruption insurance.

» MORE: Business Interruption Insurance

Self-employed barber insurance

If you are a self-employed barber – for example, working freelance in clients’ homes – you likely won’t need some of the policies recommended for barber-shop owners.

However, if you are driving from location to location for work, you may need to take out a business car insurance policy separate from your barber insurance. This will make sure you are adequately covered when on the road.

Do I need barber insurance?

The instance in which your barber business is legally required to have insurance is if you have any non-family member, UK-based employees. Then you must have employers’ liability insurance – without it, you are not only risking the costs of a claim made against your business but a fine of £2,500 every day you are not properly insured.

Just because a policy isn’t a legal requirement, however, doesn’t mean it isn’t recommended that you consider taking it out.

All it would take is an employee slicing their hand on a razor, or slipping over on a wet floor, for the policy to prove its worth.

For example, if a client tripped over the cable of your hairdryer, and broke their wrist, they could make a claim against you. Public liability insurance could cover the legal fees and compensation costs if that happened. It would also kick in if you were working at a client’s home and accidentally knocked an open jar of hair gel onto their carpet.

Let’s say you nick a customer’s throat when using a straight razor or that a client has an allergic reaction to the aftershave you use at the end of their session. In both cases, professional treatment liability insurance could cover the costs of a claim made against you.

If, instead of applying the aftershave yourself, a client buys a bottle – or you give him a free sample – and has an allergic reaction at home, you could benefit from having a product liability insurance policy.

Meanwhile, say your barbering tools are stolen from the back of your car between clients. If that were to happen, a tools and equipment insurance policy could pay the cost of replacements.

» MORE: Do I need business insurance?

What does barber insurance cover?

While the specifics of your barber insurance policy will vary depending on your individual needs and what cover you decide to include – for example, whether you are a freelancer or run your own barber shop – you can usually expect it to be made up of a combination of the following:

public liability insurance
professional treatment liability insurance
product liability insurance
employers’ liability insurance
tools and equipment insurance
business buildings and contents insurance
business interruption insurance

Many of the same policies recommended for a barber would also be applicable for a hairdresser or beauty therapist.

» COMPARE: Beauty therapist insurance

What treatments are covered by barber insurance?

Before taking out a barber insurance package, it is best to make sure that the policies contained within will cover you for all the treatments you perform. This can include, but is not limited to:

washing, cutting and styling hair, hair pieces and wigs
wet and dry shaves, including beard trimming and shaping
traditional Turkish barber treatments, such as ear-hair flaming and nose-hair waxing

You may not necessarily be insured, however, for hair dyeing, bleaching and other chemical treatments; eyebrow plucking and shaping; and the attachment of hair extensions.

What you are and are not covered for when it comes to treatments will depend on your insurer and the terms of the policy.

What is usually not included in barber insurance?

Broadly speaking, what is and is not included in your barber insurance package is down to what you choose to pay for.

So, if you don’t take out product liability insurance as part of your package, and a client makes a claim against you for a product you have sold them, you wouldn’t be covered by your insurance.

You should also know that your business tools and equipment insurance won’t cover general wear and tear, and may not cover electrical and mechanical breakdown. Any claims related to theft, meanwhile, will have to satisfy the security requirements of your insurer.

How much does barber insurance cost?

How much your barber insurance costs will be affected by a number of factors that will vary from barber to barber. This can include:

how many policies you choose to take out
the level of cover you want from each policy
how many employees you have
where your business is located
how many years of experience you have as a barber
whether you are self-employed or run a limited company

How to choose the best barber insurance policy for you

Not every barber will have the same insurance needs. For example, if you run your own barber shop, there will be policies you might consider that wouldn’t be relevant to a freelance, home-based barber.

It is wise to carefully evaluate the specific risks associated with your business, as well as barbering in general, before seeking barber insurance.

The one form of insurance you legally need as a barber is employers’ liability insurance, although this is only mandatory if you employ UK-based, non-family members.

However, it is worth seriously considering additional insurance policies such as public liability insurance, professional treatment liability insurance, product liability insurance and tool insurance to make sure your business is protected against different types of claims.

If you are a self-employed barber, the following policies may be worth considering:

public liability insurance
professional treatment liability insurance
product liability insurance
equipment and tool insurance

You may also need business car insurance to make sure you are adequately insured on the roads.

As a mobile barber, you will likely need at least class 1 business car insurance to be legally covered on the roads.

This is on top of the recommended barber insurance policies, such as public liability insurance, professional treatment liability insurance, product liability insurance and tool insurance.

If you are an employee at a barber shop, you should be covered by your employer’s insurance policies.

If you rent a chair at a barber shop, then you will need to check whether you are covered by the shop’s policies. If not, you may want to consider public liability insurance, professional treatment liability insurance, product liability insurance and tool insurance.

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