Working from home: what your home insurance won't cover

Home-based grooming is the fastest-growing way to run a grooming business, and it is also where the biggest insurance gap sits.

Household policies are written for domestic use. They generally exclude business activity, business equipment, business stock and, critically, members of the public visiting the property for business reasons.

That means a client injured on your path, a dryer stolen from your garage, or a dog injured in your grooming room can all fall outside the cover you thought you had.

A specialist grooming policy fixes this: public and products liability for clients visiting, treatment risk for the grooming itself, care custody and control for dogs on site, and equipment and stock cover for the room you actually work in.

Two non-insurance checks are worth doing at the same time. Look at any mortgage, lease or planning conditions on running a business from the property, and make sure client access and parking are safe and lit — most home-based liability claims come down to the walk from the car to the door.

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