What insurance does an auto detailer need?
There's no one-size answer. The right mix depends on how you work, who you work for, and what your contracts ask for. These are the coverages an auto detailer typically looks at first:
General liability
Covers third-party injuries and property damage connected to your detailing business, with the $1,000,000 per-occurrence limit clients and shops typically request. Damage to the vehicle you're actively working on falls under care, custody, and control rules, so ask about that when you quote.
Business property
Buffers, extractors, pressure washers, and the chemicals you carry are the tools your business depends on, and this helps protect them against theft and damage.
Commercial auto
If you drive a van or trailer full of equipment between mobile jobs, that's business use of your vehicle, which personal auto policies often exclude.
Coverage always depends on your specific situation. The fastest way to see what fits is to get a quote and review your options.
What does it protect against?
The risks that matter aren't abstract. They're the everyday accidents of the work. A few scenarios that turn into real claims:
Swirl marks from a buffer
A rotary buffer catches at the wrong angle and leaves fine scratches across a client's hood. Paint correction claims like this are common in detailing, and a bad polish job on a luxury finish can run into thousands to fix.
A chemical stains the interior
A leather conditioner discolors a seat, or an interior cleaner leaves a cloudy stain on trim you were supposed to restore. The client's car came in looking one way and left looking worse, and that's a property damage claim against your business.
Water reaches the electronics
Pressure washing an engine bay or a door jamb pushes water into a sensor or connector, and the client's dashboard lights up with a warning the next morning. Damage that shows up after you've already left the job still traces back to your visit.
You damage the car while moving it
You pull the vehicle out of the garage for better light and clip a mirror on the door frame, or roll it back and tap a post. Because the car was in your care at the time the damage happened, it's treated differently than a stranger's car you might bump in traffic, and it's worth understanding how that exclusion works before you assume a claim is automatically covered.
Certificates of insurance
Auto detailing clients rarely ask for a certificate on a single wash-and-wax, but dealerships, fleet accounts, and property managers who bring you on as a regular vendor typically do. Mobile detailers working a commercial lot or a corporate fleet account are asked for proof of general liability before the first appointment. Olli's general liability policies include instant certificates, so a new fleet account doesn't stall on paperwork.
New to certificates? Start with our guide to the certificate of insurance: what's on one, who asks for it, and how to provide yours.
Related trades
Other trades & home services professions face many of the same risks. See how the coverage compares: