Scottish Government Introduce Regulation for Non-Surgical Treatments

In April 2016 the Scottish Government introduced new regulation for non-surgical treatments such as botox, dermafillers, chemical peels/skin rejuvenation and laser treatments.

This regulation was introduced following recommendations made by the Scottish Cosmetic Interventions Expert Group. They found that the increased popularity of these treatments, coupled with the lack of regulation in the industry, was leaving the Scottish public exposed to injury by practitioners.

How will the regulation of independent clinics be put in place?

The regulation of cosmetic clinics will be brought into place in a three phase process.

It will begin with registered independent clinics who perform non-NHS work such as nurses, doctors and dentists and then extend to those who provide cosmetic procedures such as beauticians, beauty therapists and clinical scientists.

The first phase comes into force on the 1st of April 2017 and at present we await the dates for the remaining phases.

Practitioners will be required to register with Healthcare Improvement Scotland by 31st March 2017 and will require to pay a fee of £1990.00. The new regulations means they will be held accountable for their services by way of regular inspection regimes and a complaints procedure.

If an independent clinic has not registered by this date it will be deemed to be an offence and the practitioner could be subject to prosecution.

Jennifer Watson, Associate from Digby Brown who specialises in personal injury claims resulting from negligent treatments such as botox states:

“These are welcome changes to the industry and I’m very pleased that the Scottish Government has taken these steps.

“Prior to this there was no regulation of the cosmetic industry, and claimants would be shocked to hear that they may not be able to hold the practitioner accountable.

"Often the injuries in such cases are devastating and long-lasting and the lack of regulation would mean those who have suffered an injury would be denied access to justice.”

Image