Beauty business insurance

Betriebshaftpflicht (public liability insurance) is not required by law: the IHK (chamber of commerce) treats it as voluntary, though it labels it “dringend empfohlen” (strongly recommended). What is compulsory is gesetzliche Unfallversicherung (statutory accident insurance), which for beauty businesses is the BGW. Every salon must register with it, and contributions for staff start with your first hire. Owners of hair salons and self-employed foot care practitioners are insured there themselves from day one, even when working alone. But the BGW pays for injuries to you or your staff, not to clients. Without Betriebshaftpflicht, a client’s chemical burn or allergic reaction comes out of your own pocket.

For beauty professionals the difference is mostly the name. The market often uses Berufshaftpflicht (professional liability insurance) and Betriebshaftpflicht (public liability insurance) interchangeably, and both cover the same thing: injury to clients and damage to their belongings, plus the financial loss that follows. What you should compare is something else. First, are all your treatments listed in the policy? Second, how is your training documented? At die Haftpflichtkasse, for example, cover only applies to what your Aus- or Fortbildung (training or further training) qualifies you to do, and proof is required when you apply or after a claim.

Usually not as a separate policy, and I would not pay extra for one. A beautician’s main risk is injury to a client or damage to her belongings. Earnings the client loses because of an injury are paid by Betriebshaftpflicht (public liability insurance) as a consequence of that injury. Pure financial loss with no injury or damage is already included up to €100,000 in die Haftpflichtkasse’s policy for beauty businesses, including claims over data protection breaches. It does not pay DSGVO (GDPR) fines. A separate policy is mainly for people whose work is giving advice or handling other people’s money.

Not if only the result is the problem. Redoing the work or giving a refund are your obligations under the contract, and under the general liability terms (AHB) Betriebshaftpflicht (public liability insurance) does not pay for them, nor for a discount. It is different if hair or skin is harmed, for example a chemical burn to the scalp or an allergic reaction after colouring. The insurer will check such a claim, pay for treatment and compensation if it is justified and reject it if it is not, in court if need be. So note which product you used and for how long.

It depends on the policy, so check your treatments line by line. Die Haftpflichtkasse’s Betriebshaftpflicht (public liability insurance) for beauty businesses covers laser and IPL hair removal, fruit acid peels, microneedling and sunbeds, even minor surgery in foot care, but only within your training. Permanent make-up, microblading, piercing and tattoos are excluded; permanent make-up and microblading can be added for an extra premium, recorded in the policy schedule. The law adds rules of its own: since 31 December 2022 laser and IPL work requires Fachkunde (certified competence) under the NiSV, and since the end of 2020 only doctors may remove tattoos or permanent make-up by laser.

In die Haftpflichtkasse’s calculator on this page, the premium for Betriebshaftpflicht (public liability insurance) depends on how many people work in the business, including you. Cover for up to five people with a €3 million sum insured costs €178.50 a year including insurance premium tax; each additional person adds €35.70, and part-time staff count as half. Paying annually is cheapest: half-yearly costs 3% more, quarterly 5%. Basic personal liability cover for the owner is also included at no extra cost. Compare it with your own policy before renewing, although it ends when the salon’s policy ends.