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Laser Hair Removal Burns Compensation Claims

Last Updated On 22nd October 2024. Laser hair removal is a semi-permanent form of removing unwanted body hair. Laser hair removal in the UK has become increasingly popular over recent years and more and more beauty salons and clinics are offering this treatment as a service.

As with all other services they offer, beauticians have a duty of care when carrying out such procedures to ensure everything goes smoothly and that the outcome is as the client expects, and that nothing goes wrong. However, as with all cosmetic surgery, there are laser hair removal risks, and if the beautician has failed to adequately inform the client about the procedure and something goes wrong, then you will be able to claim laser hair removal burns compensation.

If this has happened to you, we may be able to help you secure the maximum amount of compensation that you deserve. Get in touch with our advisors today to get started.

A woman having hair removed from her leg.

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How Does Laser Hair Removal Work?

Laser hair removal is a beauty treatment for the semi-permanent removal of undesired body and facial hair. It first became available to the public in the mid-1990s and today is available on many high streets across Great Britain and elsewhere.

This treatment is sometimes referred to as IPL (Intense Pulsed Light). This treatment works by exposing unwanted hair to pulses of laser lights in order to damage the follicle.

The machine used produces a specific type of light wavelength. This is pulsed for a certain amount of time, targeting the hair follicle only. Laser hair removal has become popular for its speed and can lead to the permanent loss of hair in the treated area. This is after repeated treatments.

There are common side effects of laser removal treatment. You may experience symptoms such as redness or pink discolouration, as well as some skin irritation such as itchiness or swelling in the area which has been treated. These symptoms usually pass within a matter of days.

Some minor burns can occur too. It’s possible to treat or soothe them by applying certain products containing aloe vera or something similar to the affected area. However, there are other types of burns that can be more severe.

Can I Claim Laser Hair Removal Burns Compensation?

In order to make a personal injury claim for laser hair removal gone wrong, it’s necessary to meet a set of criteria. They are:

  • That the beauty salon or person carrying out the treatment owed you a duty of care. In most cases, this is simple to prove
  • That the beauty salon breached its duty of care. For this, you’d need evidence that they failed to act in a way they should have
  • As a result of the breach, you suffered an injury such as a burn

If you want to get a free case check to see if you meet the criteria for making a personal injury claim, just get in touch on the number at the top of the page.

How Long Do I Have To Make A Claim?

In order to successfully claim compensation against the clinic or beautician that negligently caused you burns during your treatment, you must ensure that you start your claim within the personal injury claims time limit.

This is generally 3 years. This can be three years from the date you suffered the burn during the laser treatment or 3 years from the date you became aware of your injuries. However, there are some exceptions to the time limit.

If the claimant was under 18 at the time of the injury, the time limit would be suspended until their 18th birthday. A claim can be made during this time, but a litigation friend must act as a representative. Once the claimant turns 18, if a claim is not already underway, they will have 3 years to start one themselves.

Someone with mental capacity will also have their time limit suspended. If they gain the mental ability to represent themselves, their 3-year time limit will begin on that date. A litigation friend can begin their claim at any time during the suspended period.

Please reach out for any further questions you may have about claiming for injuries sustained in a laser hair removal gone wrong.

A Case Study On Laser Hair Removal Gone Wrong

Let’s take a look at a case study exploring a case involving laser hair removal gone wrong.

A laser hair removal injury claim was brought by a client of a salon who experienced burns from laser hair removal and subsequent scarring after an IPL (intense pulsed light) treatment. The beautician in the salon was found to be in breach of the Supply of Goods and Services Act 1982 because she failed to act with reasonable care in carrying out the laser hair removal service.

She was found to be negligent as she turned up the machine intensity too high and it reached a hazardous level of intensity which was untested. She did not take reasonable care to ensure that she wouldn’t be putting the client in danger. A patch test was not carried out and the client was unaware of the possible side effects. The normal procedure would be to cool the patient’s skin before and after the treatment but she did not do this.

This combination of failings meant that the client was found to be eligible to receive compensation for laser hair removal claims.

What Happened Next?

The laser burns, in this case, was due to the fact that the claimant suffered superficial burns, and although these healed after around a month, she was left with some hyperpigmentation and hypopigmentation, which is discolouration of the skin and is visible when seen up close. The beautician admitted responsibility and so the laser hair removal burn claim was settled out of court for an amount that the claimant was happy with.

In typical cases of personal injury, the claimant can claim compensation for general damages and special damages. Whereas general damages aim to cover physical and mental pain or suffering, special damages aim to cover financial losses, such as loss of earnings or out-of-pocket expenses paid for medical bills and adaptation to property.

What To Do If Harmed By Laser Hair Removal

An important aspect of claiming laser hair removal burns compensation is gathering sufficient evidence to support your claim. The evidence you gather will help demonstrate the failure to uphold the duty of care by your practitioner, as well as highlight the extent of the harm you experienced.

Examples of evidence you could gather include:

  • Medical evidence showing what harm laser burns caused and details of any further treatment you had to correct this.
  • Photographs of the burns and/or scarring caused.
  • If anyone else attended your appointments they could act as a witness. Be sure to provided their contact information so they can give a statement during the claims process.
  • Proof of any financial losses stemming from the harm you sustained.

For a free assessment of your eligibility to claim compensation, or to get support with collecting evidence for your laser hair removal burns compensation claim, speak to our advisors today. If eligible, one of our dedicated solicitors could take on your case and support with gathering a strong body of evidence.

What Are The Most Common Effects Of Negligent Laser Hair Removal

Our clients who have experienced laser hair removal burns on their arms while having treatment have experienced the following injuries:

  • Scarring from burns
  • Blistering from burns
  • Infections
  • Laser burns on arms, laser burns on the legs and laser burn marks on the face
  • Hyper-pigmentation, which means the darkening of the skin. An uneven skin tone is another effect
  • Corneal ulcers are open sores that can develop on the surface of the eye.
    Reduction of muscle tone

Clients often ask us “are laser burns permanent?”. Unfortunately, while some laser burns are treatable, other more serious burns can result in permanent scarring. Before you undergo laser hair removal treatment, your practitioner should ask about any existing conditions or injuries you suffer from to determine whether or not this treatment is right for you.

Liability For Injuries Caused By Laser Hair Removal

If you are making a personal injury claim for burns on your arms or elsewhere on your body your claim will either be against the practitioner or the beauty salon or clinic where you received your treatment.

Your personal injury solicitor will look at the evidence to see which party was negligent in your case and will be able to advise you on how to proceed with your claim.

You will be able to sue for compensation for your pain and suffering and claim back expenses related to your injuries such as the direct cost of your laser hair removal treatment.

Hair And Beauty Venue Statistics

There are thousands of hair and beauty venues across England and Wales alone. The Office of National Statistics shows that whilst the concentration is highest in London, there is no one region that has less than 1,000.

Whilst all of these venues may not offer laser hair removal as a service, the figures serve to illustrate how big the industry is at present. There are a number of variables to take into consideration when considering what could go wrong during a treatment such as this that could lead to a laser burn.

The graph below shows figures as of March 2020.

laser hair removal burns on arms graph

How Is Laser Hair Removal Burns Compensation Calculated?

If a salon or clinic has been negligent in their laser hair removal treatment and you have suffered injuries as a result, such as burns on your arms, you could be eligible to claim compensation for your injuries.

Your claim will look at the extent of your injuries, alongside the effects they have had on your life and a compensation amount will be assessed, that can both:

  • Compensate you for the financial losses caused by your injury (special damages)
  • Compensate you for the pain and distress your injury may have caused you (general damages)

To make a successful claim for special damages you should collect and maintain any relevant records of the financial impact of your injury. This can be:

  • Loss of earnings
  • Prescription costs
  • Private cosmetic procedures to repair the harm

If you are looking to make a claim for the laser burns you suffered, please speak to one of our advisers. They can value your claim and give you an estimate for compensation and inform of materials you can start collecting now that will be relevant to your claim.

Claim Compensation For A Laser Hair Removal Burn With Our No Win No Fee Solicitors

If a breach of duty of care has caused you to suffer from a laser hair removal burn, compensation could be owed to you. If so, then you may find it helpful to ask a solicitor to assist you. If you’re concerned about paying an upfront cost, hiring a solicitor on a No Win No Fee basis could be useful for you. All our lawyers can offer this type of agreement.

If your claim succeeds, then a legally capped percentage of your settlement is deducted by your No Win No Fee lawyer. If your claim fails, you are not obliged to pay them. To find out if you could make a claim for laser hair removal compensation or the process of claiming for hair laser removal burns, get in touch with our advisors today.

Why Work With Legal Expert For Your Personal Injury Claim?

Legal Expert is a well-respected personal injury solicitor’s firm known for our integrity. We offer our clients a less stressful, more affordable way to claim and will always fight to win our clients the compensation they deserve.

We have an excellent track record of winning cosmetic negligence claims cases, for claimants just like you, so trust us to win you the laser hair removal burns on arms compensation you are entitled to.

Call our team today on the number at the top of this page for your free consultation, and we will assess how much compensation you can claim and with your permission, refer you to the right personal injury solicitor to handle your claim.

Learn More About Laser Hair Removal Compensation Claims

In this final section of our guide on claiming compensation for laser burns caused by hair removal on the arms, we’ve included some links you may find useful.