Can I get a refund for useless laser hair removal

xamapola

Hello,
Firstly, I am new in the forum, I read the rules and hope this thread is posted properly. Sorry if it is not, I am a bit lost!

I bought 6 sessions of laser hair removal.. The treatment took 1 year to complete. I noticed it was not working but had to carry on as I had to pay all in advance and also decided to give it a go. Finished my last session and a month later the hair was growing as usual, it is like I had no laser at all. No results whatsoever. I did not expect to be hairless as that may take more sessions but they said it would at least "reduce" the hair. It did not. Rang them and made I complaint, they refused to give me any contact to complain so managed to find head office postal address and need to send a letter. Now I can see a lot of forums with bad reviews and complaining about them no replying to any complaint nor giving refund. Somebody told me that my credit card would refund the money but I paid with Debit Card, £539 I also read in a forum that what they do is against Consumer Rights Act 2015 (bought the treatments in May and July 2015) and that I could take them to the Small claims court. I am very confused and upset, I don't know what to do. I would so appreciate any advice you can provide me.
Have a nice day!

[Deleted User]

I suspect that you will find that they have a 'get out' clause. Do you have anything guaranteeing success (in writing)?

The problem is, as well, you might stand a chance if you could PROVE the course of treatment had no effects, like before and after pictures. But that is difficult to provide (dated pictures).

xamapola

Thanks for the answer Deannatrois!

Unfortunately I have nothing in writing but on their website and leaflets they say "An ideal candidate usually requires 6-8 treatments for body areas, to achieve between approximately 70-90%
permanent hair reduction".

As you say, the problem is how to prove that the treatments did not work? I saw in a few forums that some people had their money refunded, I asked them and a lady answered but she did not explained much, only that she did complain to her Credit card and they refunded the money.

Tnank you

JJ_Egan

Ideal Candidate then they are likely to say you are not ideal .

You can take them to the Small Claims court but evidence may be required .
Possibly a LBA letter before action to the head office .

xamapola

Thank you JJ Egan!

I am actually an ideal candidate because of my type of skin but again, I have no evidence to provide that the treatment was totally useless I am going to send a letter to head office anyway.

forgotmyname

Your not the ideal candidate because it didnt work on you.

The ideal candidate will have seen some immediate improvement and long lasting improvement.

LilElvis

Did you not mention the lack of progress to them after treatments 2 and 3, or 4 or 5?

What sort of laser was used - some are more effective than others?

Did you use any other hair removal method on the area being treated during the year you were having the treatment?

The treatment only works when the hair is in its growth phase, hence the need for repeated sessions to get the hairs at the right stage. When I had a course I saw results after the first session and 90% had been eradicated after 5, remaining so 10 years later.

xamapola

Hi, As the laser is attracted to the melanin, light skin and dark course hair like mine are ideal for the treatment. I did a laser hair removal treatment 10 years ago and with only 3 sessions I was hairless for more than 1 year (Did not complete the treatment because by the time was unaffordable for me, very expensive), so I know that my body responds well to laser hair removal.
Thank you

xamapola

Hello LilElvis,
Thank you for replying.
I did mention to them that I could not notice any difference except for the 1st session and they kept saying that it was too soon and I needed to complete the treatment to see the results. When I was about to finish they tried to sell me another pack.
They use Alma Soprano Laser, i searched and it normally works well.
I did follow their instructions very carefully, face had to be done every 4 weeks and body every 6 or 8 weeks. Have not waxed not plucked at all, only shaved before the appointments.
I had laser 10 years ago and only did 3 sessions because it was too expensive, the results were amazing, after only 3 sessions I had no hair for a whole year, then it started to grow but it took a while. This is why I was so confident this time. I suspect that they use very low settings so you have to keep paying for more sessions.
Thanks very much for your answer and have a nice day!