Misleading anti-wrinkle adverts and lip filling procedures banned

One of the adverts that have been banned by the Advertising Standards Authority

Advertisements from three beauty training providers promoting courses related to lip filling procedures and anti-wrinkle injections have been banned for misleading consumers.

The Joint Council for Cosmetic Practitioners (JCCP) complained about advertisements from Aesthetics Lounge Academy, Aesthetics Uni and Boss Babes Uni which it believed did not conform to its standards.

The JCCP objected to claims on the Boss Babes Uni website in February that it was “an advanced training company who train unique beauty courses across the UK”.

It also challenged a downloadable PDF document which stated Boss Babes Uni provided a qualification for “Anti-Wrinkle Injections and Dermal Fillers” on its “amazing 3 day course medics and non medics”.
The Facebook page for Aesthetics Lounge Academy was challenged for its claim in February that its “VTCT NVQ Level 3 in Beauty Therapy” worked as “a bridging course” allowing students to “progress directly onto our aesthetics courses such as Dermal Fillers or Anti Wrinkles (Botox)”.

The JCCP also objected to the website for Aesthetics Uni which featured a page entitled “COURSE Practitioner Lip Filler” and challenged whether its claims gave a misleading impression of the advertised courses. In its three rulings, the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) noted the NHS advised patients seeking dermal filler “to avoid practitioners who had only completed a short training course” as complications “could be serious, including infection, nerve damage and blindness”.

The ASA said advertisements for courses teaching the administration of beauty treatments such as anti-wrinkle injections and dermal filler should provide prospective students with information on course requirements, length, the qualification attained and whether these met the standards needed to join a relevant professional register.

It added such information was important because “it gave students an indication of the likelihood of the course giving them the knowledge and skills required to safely carry out the procedures independently”.

Boss Babes Uni said its anti-wrinkle injection and dermal filler courses were run by qualified medics and accredited by the Continuing Professional Development Certification Service.

But the ASA said it did not consider the Facebook post to be “robust evidence graduates of the advertised course were eligible for registration on a relevant professional register”.