Justice after injury for woman exposed to laser risk
Justice After Injury For Woman Exposed To Laser
Risk
30I09I09
In a recent out-of-court
settlement, a woman, who for reasons of confidentiality is referred
to simply as Miss G, represented by Hugh James recovered £11,500
after she suffered injury during a course of laser hair removal
treatment. Miss G suffered partial thickness burns to her arms and
legs during the treatment at a London beauty salon. The cost of the
treatment amounting to several thousands of pounds was also
recovered as part of the settlement.
Laser and Intense Pulsed Light
(IPL) hair removal is increasingly popular in the booming beauty
industry. It involves a short burst of light being fired at the
skin's surface. This is absorbed by the pigment in the hair, which
heats up and damages the hair follicle preventing hair from
re-growing.
The apparent ease with which anyone
can set up and offer this kind of treatment means that the
potential for negligence and injury claims increases dramatically.
The serious and long lasting problems that can arise from
inappropriate laser and IPL treatment include burns, skin damage,
blistering leading to mild scarring and changes in skin
pigmentation.
Jonathan Rees, a partner at Hugh
James specialising in helping injured people make compensation
claims when beauty treatments go wrong, says: Administered by
inexperienced, poorly trained and unregulated beauticians, laser
hair removal treatment can be dangerous. As with all cosmetic
treatments, laser and IPL treatments should be carried out by
experienced professionals.”
He continues: “We have seen an
increase in the number of reported problems with laser hair removal
systems where patients have been left either scarred or burned from
the process. As the use of lasers becomes more widespread for both
cosmetic treatment and also more therapeutic purposes, such as
laser eye treatment, we anticipate this trend will increase. In the
interests of consumer safety, it is essential that the provision of
this and other beauty treatments becomes better regulated.”
Hugh James successfully represents
people who have suffered injury caused by negligence during laser
hair removal and other beauty procedures, recovering millions of
pounds in damages each year. A specialist team assists with both
relatively minor claims to complex, life-changing ones, ensuring
that the right compensation and the right rehabilitative or
corrective treatment as may be required is obtained.