Claims for compensation in relation to beauty treatments are more common than ever, partly as a result of the growth of the beauty industry in the UK in recent years. With an increased obsession with personal image, more and more people are subjecting themselves to regular cosmetic treatments.
However, Patients who have suffered from botched cosmetic surgery are often vulnerable and assume there are regulations in place to protect them. The downside to the boom in cosmetic treatments is that individuals suffer at the hands of untrained or irresponsible practitioners, resulting in an increase in beauty claims.
While surgical cosmetic procedure rates fall, less invasive – and less expensive – non-surgical procedures such as chemical peels, Botox, cosmetic dentistry and dermal fillers, continue to rise.
Surgery must be performed by a qualified surgeon but there is no common “cosmetic surgery” qualification. A lot of procedures are non-surgical and a lot of the industry is unregulated. Unregulated fillers in particular are exempt from almost any product safety regulation in the UK.
Non-surgical procedures can be effectively undertaken by anyone irrespective of their experience, knowledge or training. Problems therefore can unfortunately be common. Negligent surgery or cosmetic treatment can have serious and life-changing effects.
The main issues currently being encountered across the cosmetic treatment industry are:
- Lack of regulation leading to ‘cowboy’ proliferation
- Criteria for patient selection ignored by untrained practitioners
- UK patients seduced by cheap offers abroad, leaving NHS to pick up the tab when something goes wrong
The British Association of Plastic Surgeons; (www.baaps.org.uk); have revealed data which shows that 80% of Surgeons have recently experienced an exponential rise in requests for ‘revisional’ – fixing botched procedures – work.
Patients are requesting procedures to correct failed cosmetic procedures with some Surgeons counting as much as a third of their own practice just fixing other people’s mistakes. Others avoid taking up these cases and decline treating them, as the problems are often unsolvable.
The most common reasons for the revisions are as follows:
- patients being incorrectly selected for the initial surgery (they had been medically or psychologically unsuitable for a particular procedure, yet it was performed nevertheless);
- the original procedure had been clearly carried out by someone with dangerously inadequate training, and a similar proportion
- cheap deals abroad.
There is currently a rise of ‘cosmetic medical tourism’ deals offering all–inclusive package holidays with heavily discounted cosmetic treatment. However, there are huge risks of complications post-surgery due to travel, less robust regulations, as well as a lack of consistent follow up.
Increasing numbers of patients are returning home with serious complications after receiving cosmetic surgery abroad. Consequently, many patients are being treated in the NHS costing significant sums of money.
The Beauty Claim team at JPS Walker Solicitors can help you claim compensation for an injury that was caused by somebody else’s negligence. Our solicitors are experts in these types of claims and can guide you through the entire process, ensuring you have specialist advice every step of the way. We offer to handle your beauty injury claim under a No Win No Fee agreement so there is no financial risk to you.
Call us now for free, impartial advice on 0161 713 5575 or complete our online enquiry form to discuss your claim with a member of our specialist team.
