Insurance for Estheticians

Your clients depend on your expertise to help them look and feel their best. But some esthetic treatments come with risks like an adverse reaction to a waxing burn, chemical peel or other slip-ups that may seriously harm your business. That's why it's a great idea to have ethetician insurance. Find insurance for estheticians to protect you against medical bills, legal fees and more. Start with our business insurance guide to understand your coverage options and find the right policy today.

Best Esthetician Insurance

Even as a licensed esthetician, you may be sued for damages even when you’ve done nothing wrong. Your best bet is to protect yourself with business insurance for estheticians. 

Specific coverage plans will depend on your business’s specialty, as there are many esthetician spas and salons competing in the modern, wellness-focused culture.

These top carriers will help you obtain optimized coverage for your small business.

Types of Estheticians Insurance

The personal nature of esthetician services expose you to unique risks. Here are some common types of insurance to protect against these risks:

Professional Liability Insurance

Professional liability insurance, also known as errors and omissions insurance, covers claims against businesses that offer personal and professional services, including your esthetician business. You will benefit from professional liability insurance when 1 of your clients is dissatisfied with a particular treatment.

Insurance for estheticians may also come in handy with the business aspects of running a spa or salon, particularly concerning the handling of client-sensitive data and files. Professional liability insurance may be important in these situations:

• Negligence. You wax a customer’s eyebrows and their facial skin is severely irritated. The client is forced to cancel a modeling gig and seek medical treatment, so you are sued for damages. Professional liability insurance will protect you if such a claim is made.
• Claims for services provided years back. Years after the procedure, a client can sue you for a laser treatment she was initially happy with. Professional liability insurance may cover claims arising from such a case.
• Loss of personal information. You accidentally misplace a file with sensitive customer information. It was by mistake, but the information is compromised and your client sued for the release of their personally identifiable information. Professional liability insurance may protect you against such claims and pay the cost of appointing an attorney.

General Liability Insurance

General liability insurance protects you and your business from lawsuits like:

• Claims of bodily injury. General liability insurance protects your business from claims of bodily injuries sustained in your business premise. For instance, if a client trips over an electric power cord and fractures their arm, general liability insurance will cover their medical expenses.
• Claims of property damage. General liability insurance can help pay the cost of repairing or replacing property damaged by your business, say when your employee damages a client’s phone while at your massage office.
• Claims of libel or slander. Liability insurance will help cover the costs of a claim of slander filed against your business, say if your employee makes untruthful remarks about a competitor or a client.

Business Income Insurance

If you’re forced to close temporarily due to damage to property or direct physical loss, business income insurance may help you:

• Replace the lost income for the period if no damage or physical loss has occurred
• Pay for continuing operating expenses, like ordinary payroll expenses
• Pay for relocation expenses

Business income insurance provides coverage for events that are beyond your control, including wind, fire, hail and vandalism that may result in direct physical damage or loss of covered property which disrupts your business.

Commercial Property Insurance

Commercial property insurance helps protect your physical location. It also protects rented or owned equipment you use for work, including health and beauty equipment and furniture.

Workers’ compensation insurance protects your business and its employees from work-related illnesses, accidents and even death. Most states mandate workers’ comp insurance to cover the medical costs and lost wages for workers who fall sick or are injured on the job. You could be liable for these costs and attract penalties from the state if you don’t carry workers’ compensation insurance.

Employment Practices Insurance

Employment practices insurance provides coverage against claims made by your employees alleging:

• Wrongful termination
• Harassment
• Discrimination based on race, sex, age or disability

Small businesses are most vulnerable to employment claims since they often lack the employee handbook or legal department detailing the procedures and policies that guide hiring, terminating or disciplining employees.

Average Cost of Esthetician Insurance

Several factors weigh in on the cost of esthetician business insurance. The nature of your business risks will impact your premium, but so does:

• Value of equipment and property. Insurance companies will calculate your commercial property insurance premium based on the value of what your business owns. You will pay a higher premium if the value of your insured property is high. This is because insurers assume that they will make a larger claim settlement in the event of property damage or loss.
• Your business location. You’re at a higher risk of loss and property damage if your business is located in a flood-prone region. Your insurance premium will reflect the risk levels, and a higher risk level will result in a higher premium.
• Payroll size. The number of employees working at your beauty spa will weigh in on the cost of your workers’ compensation insurance. Your business faces a higher risk of employee-related claims if it employs more personnel, hence a higher insurance premium.
• Revenue. The cost of your business income insurance will depend on the revenue your business reports annually. You will pay more for insurance if your business has a higher annual revenue since you stand to lose more in case of an occurrence that disrupts your income.
• Esthetician services offered. Esthetician businesses offer a wide range of services, and your area of specialization will affect the cost of your business insurance. You can expect to pay a higher premium if your business offers complex cosmetic procedures as opposed to a simple barbershop.
• Deductible. Choosing a higher deductible lowers your insurance premium since it means you’re carrying greater financial responsibility if a claim is made against your business.

Insurance carriers like Progressive list the average cost of their business insurance policies on their website. This cost is based on the number of policy purchases per year. 

In 2019, for instance, the average monthly cost of a 1-year policy through the Progressive Advantage® Business Program was $53 for general liability and $46 for professional liability insurance.

Premiums vary by the policy since each policy covers a different set of risks, which are taken into account when calculating the final premium cost.

How Esthetician Insurance Works

Esthetician insurance refers to the business policies cosmetologists, barbers, hairdressers, nail technicians and massage therapists typically purchase. It isn’t a specific policy but an array of business insurance policies tailored to cover common operational risks. 

The most common form of esthetician insurance is general liability insurance, which covers claims that the business caused bodily injury, reputation harm or property damage to 3^rd parties.

Most beauty shops need more than general liability insurance. You can purchase a business owner’s policy that combines general liability and commercial property insurance. Professional liability insurance can protect you from claims that you were negligent or didn’t deliver professional services as required.

Cost isn’t the only aspect you should consider when it’s time to purchase esthetician insurance. Look for policies that cover your specific risks and match your business needs.

Shop Esthetician Insurance Quotes Online

There are different types of esthetician businesses, each with a set of unique exposures that must be protected with the right insurance policies. Obtaining and comparing quotes is the 1st step toward having the right policies for your business. 

Our recommended carriers can provide no-obligation quotes within minutes. Enter your ZIP code to get started now.