Makeup artistry is mobile, and the cover has to be too. Almost none of the work happens at a place the artist controls, and the claim that arrives is usually about a face rather than about a floor.
The claim is a reaction, not an accident
The realistic claim is an allergic or irritant reaction to a product, occasionally an eye injury from lashes or adhesive, and occasionally damage to a client's garment. Reactions are harm caused by the treatment, so treatment liability is the section that answers, and public liability alone is not enough. Where the artist also sells or supplies products, products liability applies to those, which is a third section rather than an extension of either.
Patch testing and the conditions attached
Most treatment liability wordings make patch testing a condition where the manufacturer requires it, particularly for lash adhesive, tinting and some semi permanent products. Bridal work compresses this badly, because the trial and the wedding are often close together and the client is reluctant. The record of the test and of the consultation is what defends the claim, and its absence turns a defensible reaction into a paid one.
Makeup artist public liability insurance in venues and on sets
Hotels, venues, studios and production sets often require a certificate before allowing a supplier on site, sometimes at a limit disproportionate to the work. Cover has to state that treatment away from fixed premises is included. Sets and productions add their own conditions, and working abroad on a shoot takes the artist outside a domestic territorial limit unless it was extended, which is a question to ask before the flight rather than after. Public liability is the certificate those venues ask for, answering for injury or damage to other people and their property, with treatment liability beside it for the reaction claim.
The kit, which is the business
A professional kit represents a substantial investment in products, brushes, airbrush equipment and lighting, and it lives in a car or a case rather than at an address. Cover needs to follow it, which means a portable equipment or all risks extension rather than contents tied to a premises. The usual overnight vehicle conditions apply, and an artist who leaves a kit in a car after a late finish is in exactly the situation those conditions were written about.
Questions people ask about makeup artist insurance
Is a client's allergic reaction covered?
Under treatment liability, provided the service is declared and patch testing conditions were met where the product required it.
Do venues require insurance from makeup artists?
Frequently, yes, and often at a limit larger than the work suggests. A certificate is usually requested before access is granted.
Is my kit covered in the car?
Only with a portable equipment or all risks extension, and subject to the overnight vehicle conditions in that section.
What insurance does a makeup artist need?
Treatment liability for reactions, public liability for injury and damage at venues, products liability if you sell or supply products, and a portable equipment or all risks extension for the kit.