It doesn’t matter how good you are or how long you’ve been doing it. Working with sharp tools, electric machinery and hazardous chemicals means all nail technicians need protection.
Staff training, PPE and maintaining your equipment only goes so far. You also have your reputation and bank balance to look out for. And a legal claim is anything but a good look.
Time to show your nail business some TLC and choose the right insurance for it. Here’s a quick guide.
What insurance do nail technicians need?
A lot depends on the setup of your business. Your insurance needs are slightly different depending on whether you work from home, rent a booth, own a salon or work as a mobile manicurist.
Wherever you operate (and however), two policies are essential:
If you employ staff, you should also have workers’ compensation insurance (it’s the law in most states).
There are lots of different nail tech insurance policies out there but these are the ones worth thinking about first.
It’s a bit like nail care itself. Get the base coat right and you can add the fancy, extra stuff later on.
General liability insurance for nail technicians
This is essential insurance for nail technicians with visiting clients, regardless of whether you work in a salon, a booth or from home. It protects against claims for:
- Bodily injury (like slips and trips, but not injuries related to your professional services)
- Property damage
- Personal injury, including slander and libel.
Let’s say your client arrives at your salon on a rainy day, slips on a pool of water and breaks their ankle. Or you accidentally knock a bottle of nail varnish remover over their new mobile phone. Or they overhear one of your employees gossiping about them and sue you for slander.
Either way, you’ll have to pay to fix the damage. Your client’s medical treatment, a new phone… then there’ll be the legal bills to cover if a claim goes to court. Your own and possibly also your client’s (if you’re found at fault).
That’s thousands (or even hundreds of thousands) of dollars out of your own pocket. Unless you have general liability insurance to take care of it for you.
Remember, if you’re renting a booth in a spa or salon, you might be asked to show proof of general liability insurance before you sign the lease.
Professional liability insurance for nail techs
Professional liability insurance protects you when you make a mistake at work or are accused of making a mistake (even if you haven’t done anything wrong). It covers you for:
- Negligence-related injuries (emotional and physical)
- Loss of personal data.
Examples include a slip with an electrical nail buffer, causing emotional distress and physical injury to your client along with demands that you pay for their medical treatment.
Or a customer having an allergic reaction to the gel nails you applied, prompting them to cancel their modeling job and sue you for loss of earnings.
And you can still hurt a client without harming them physically. Like accidentally emailing their personal details to your entire contacts list, sparking a lawsuit for disclosure of person information.
What other insurance might I need?
Business personal property insurance
Mobile nail tech insurance to cover your equipment while you’re out and about. Business personal property (BPP) insurance compensates you if your kit gets lost, damaged or stolen. It protects everything from portable tech (laptops, mobile phones) to UV lights and driers, down to your everyday scissors and nail files.
Workers’ compensation insurance
Most states require you to have workers’ comp insurance if you employ staff. It covers you when you need to compensate your workers after they’ve injured themselves at work, paying for medical bills and missed wages.
Property insurance
This protects the premises you work in, whether you own or rent them. It can also be used to cover your contents (salon equipment, furniture, stock etc) for damage from fire, theft and other disasters.
Cyber insurance
Assuming you manage your bookings via a website and use e-mail, you’re at risk from cybercriminals too. Cyber insurance helps you recover from the damage caused by a hack or data breach. It helps advise on cybercrime prevention too.
How likely is it I’ll need to call on my insurance?
Most clients step out of your salon looking and feeling a million dollars. But what happens if they leave unhappy and threatening to cost you a million dollars?
Ideally, it won’t happen. But it can and it does. And without access to unlimited funds, your bank balance won’t take the strain.
Legal claims cost thousands of dollars to resolve. That’s taking into account everything: compensation, medical bills, legal defense, repair and replacement costs etc.
Not only does nail salon insurance cover you financially, it also offers help and support. In short, it does whatever it takes to get you back on your feet and running again.
You can get on with making everyone’s day (and nails) more beautiful knowing you’re covered.
Nail technicians’ insurance quotes online
We have more information on insurance for nail technicians on our website. Or, if you know what you need, you can get a quick quote.
If you’d like more support or to talk through your options, you can call us at 978.344.4215. We’re happy to help.