Hairdressing insurance

What is a hairdresser?

Hairdressers are artists, masters of their craft. It’s a hairdresser’s job to work with their clients to perfect the right hairstyle for them. Hairdressers deal with all sorts of clients. Some specialise in more creative and intricate styles while others cater to those just looking to give themselves a little refresh - there’s something out there for everyone.

Whether you’re giving someone’s cut a new lease of life, or perfecting the next blonde bombshell, your passion gives your client’s confidence and makes them feel like a million bucks - and that’s worth protecting.

What is AXA's hairdressing insurance?

With AXA, you can design your policy to make sure you get the covers that you need to protect your passion. For example;

• Public liability insurance is there to ensure that if someone gets hurt in your shop, you’ve covered

• Employers liability insurance protects the people you’re responsible for in case they get hurt or injured on the job

• Contents insurance ensure you’re covered for damage to your business contents and for any lost or damaged stock you have

• Buildings insurance protects your salon, if you have one, from damage

Do hairdressers need insurance for their business?

No matter how careful you are, accidents happen. With our business insurance, you can tailor you cover as your business grows or changes.

At AXA, we give you the freedom to style your insurance to meet your needs. You can pick and choose covers and build an insurance policy that protects your business, your employees if you have any, and any specialist equipment you have.

If you’re not properly insured, it could be a big blow to your hairdressing business.

For example, what would happen if someone who’s working for you develops a skin condition as a result of ongoing wet hands or exposure to hairdressing products? What if a client has a bad reaction to a hair dye or treatment you’ve used, because you’ve failed to do a patch test? Or, what if someone slips on the hair you’ve clipped, or on a wet floor? You never know what life might throw at your business, so it’s important to be prepared.

In cases like these, not only would you be liable for the cost of a claim, but your reputation could suffer, and you could lose valuable working time and potentially even returning clients. This is why you need to get business insurance, to make sure you’ve got everything covered if something like this should happen.

What are some risks hairdressers need cover for?

Accidents are an unavoidable part of life, so it’s always better to be safe than sorry. There are many things that could result in a claim against you. Here are a few of the most common ones.

One of the main reasons would be when employees have an allergic reaction or develop a skin condition as a result of working with wet hands or products. Often, the oxidisation of hair products plays a big part in this, as well as the client not receiving a patch test before a treatment.

• Slips, trips and falls are a common reason for claims. In a salon this could be the result of 

• Slips caused by clipped hair on the salon floor, product spills and wet surfaces

• Trips and falls causes by loose cords from styling tools

What type of hairdressers do we cover?

Thanks to our tailorable business insurance products, we can now insure a wide range of hairdressing businesses, including:

• Hair and beauty salons

• Barber shops

• Freelance and self-employed hairdressers and barbers

• Mobile hairdressers and barbers

And no matter whether you run your own salon, or you’re freelance, mobile or self-employed, we’ve got you covered.

What type of insurance do hairdressers need?

There are various types of insurance that you might want to consider as hairdressers. Each of the covers on offer can give you something unique that will allow give peace of mind, knowing your business insurance is in good hands.

With AXA, you can package together the right covers to suit your needs. So, whether you want to want to safeguard against accidents in your workplace or you want cover for the stock you have on hand, we’ve got what you need.

Public liability insurance for hairdressers

You never know when an accident could happen, so it’s better to be safe than sorry. When you’re dealing with customers and members of the public all day long, you never know when something could go wrong, and result in accident or injury. With public liability from AXA you’ll get;

• £1 million cover as standard, with cover levels of up £5 million

• Includes product liability cover to protect you if you sell products as well as offer services

• If we accept your claim, this will include cover for solicitor’s fees, expert counsel and compensation bills in your defence

• Standalone cover, or combine it with any of our other covers and optional extras

Employers' liability insurance for hairdressers

If you have anyone working for you then you’ll need to have employer’s liability insurance – it’s legally required under the Employers’ Liability Act 1969. Your employees help keep things running smoothly day-to-day, but what would happen if they got injured or fell ill as result of working for you, and couldn’t be there to help? With employer’s liability from AXA, you’ll get;

• £10 million protection for legal costs and compensation due

• Temporary workers covered automatically for up to 50 days free

• Cover for both full-time and part-time employees, as self-employed contractors and anyone hired on a voluntary or training basis

Business contents insurance for hairdressers

Maybe you work from you’re very own salon. Or, maybe your work on the go doing house calls. Whatever the circumstances, all businesses have contents that the need to protect, and possible even stock that needs covered. That’s where contents insurance comes in. With business contents insurance from AXA, you’ll get;

• Accidental damage to the fixtures and fittings within your salon

• Up to £1,000 of cover per employee or guest, such as a client, for accidental damage or theft of their personal belongings

• 24-hour glass replacement service for broken windows and any interior or exterior glass fixed glass such as mirrors, display cases, and sinkware

Buildings insurance for hairdressers

If you’ve got a shop front, whether that’s owned or rented, then you might want to consider adding buildings insurance as part of your contents cover. You never know when something could go wrong at your business, stopping you in your tracks for days, weeks, perhaps even months! Don’t let that happen with your shop. With buildings insurance from AXA, you’ll get;

• Cover for damages to the property insured in connection with your business

• Covered for damaged sustained from a variety of causes, such as; fire, lightning and earthquakes, explosions, rioting, storms and flooding and more

• Add extra cover for cables and underground pipes, and debris removal

What type of insurance does a freelance or self-employed hairdresser need?

If you’re a freelance or self-employed hairdresser, then you’re going to need broadly the same covers as other hairdressers. You’ll still want to be covered for public liability and business equipment cover, to keep yourself protected against accidental injury, or damage to fixtures and stock.

Employer’s liability insurance will likely not be a priority for freelance and self-employed hairdressers, though you may want to consider optional extras such as legal expenses cover, to help you stay on track with legalities such as tax payments, for example.

How much does hairdressing insurance cost?

Just like your signature hairstyle is one of a kind, so is your business. The best way to get an idea of what your policy is likely to cost is to get a quote. If you get a quote online, we’ll even give you 10%*** off the cost of your insurance.

Ready to get started?

What cover might I need for my hairdressing business?

With business insurance, you can select from the covers below to protect you. Build your own unique bundle of insurance, depending on your specific needs. That way, you only ever pay for what you need and nothing more. Tailor your cover by picking and choosing from:

*The guidance is provided on behalf of AXA by Arc Legal Assistance Ltd who are authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority.

**Rated 4.6/5 based on 16,854 total reviews. Figure accurate as of 25/01/2024.

***This discount is applied automatically and lasts for the lifetime of your policy.