Many of us use cosmetic products to alter our appearance. Some use hair dyes because they want a new colour, while others use them to reduce the appearance of grey hair. Whether this is done at home or in a salon, most people are fine after using hair dyes. However, there are several ways in which things can go wrong. If that’s happened in your case, you might not realise it, but you might be eligible to claim compensation.

In this guide to claiming compensation for hair dye injuries, we’ll look at when a claim might be possible, what scenarios might make you eligible to claim, and the levels of compensation that might be paid out.

If you want to take action for injuries caused by hair dye, we can help. To start, a claims advisor will review what’s happened during a no-obligation consultation. We’ll offer free legal advice about your options and could pass your case to one of our personal injury solicitors if your claim is strong enough. Any hair dye injury claim that they take on will be processed on a No Win No Fee basis.

To learn more about how the hair dye injury claims process works, please carry on reading. Alternatively, please feel free to call us on 0800 652 8841 if you’d like to discuss your chances of claiming right away.

Symptoms Of Injuries From Hair Dye

Hair dye injuries can be distressing, painful, and potentially life-threatening. While some side effects can be clearly linked to the use of hair dye, others may be more deceptive. You may not realise at first that your symptoms have anything to do at all with using a hair dye. If any of these symptoms manifest within a short time of having dyed your hair, it could be because of an allergic reaction to the chemicals in the dye.

Common symptoms of a hair dye injury include:

• Painful scalp irritation that cannot be calmed down
• Swelling of the neck, eyes, face and back.
• Burning, itching, rashes and other skin irritations.
• Bald patches, hair thinning or slow regrowth.
• Feeling pain or generally unwell.
• Difficulty with breathing.
• Anaphylaxis (anaphylactic shock).
• Nausea or vomiting.
• Blurred vision.

Something that’s worth remembering is that allergic reactions to hair dyes don’t just affect first time users. Even if you’ve used the same dye previously, you could sustain a hair dye injury. Aside from allergic reactions, these could also include chemical burns.

Am I Eligible To Claim Compensation For Injury From Hair Dye?

Hair dye injuries can happen whether you get your hair dyed at a beauty salon or you use a home hair dye kit. In either case, you have a legal right to make a hair dye injury claim for your injuries if you can prove that the injury was caused due to no fault of yours.

To be eligible to pursue a hair dye injury claim, you’ll need to show that:

• You used or had a hair dye product applied; and
• Through no fault of your own, you suffered injuries as a direct result of using the dye.

Claims are possible if you used a hair dye at home or if you were injured after treatment in a beauty salon.

Claims Against Hair Dye Manufacturers Or Beauty Salons

Where you’ve been injured using a hair dye purchased in a shop, you may be able to claim against the manufacturer if you can show that you suffered despite following the instructions on the packaging.

In beauty salons, you would need to prove that negligence caused your injuries. This could be the case if:

• You were not asked to have a patch test before having your hair dyed. These are used to check for allergies to chemicals contained within the hair dye product.
• The dye was left in for too long and your scalp was burned as a result.

In either case, witnesses could be used to help corroborate your version of events. Therefore, as well as the evidence listed above, you may wish to supply contact details for any witnesses to your solicitor when you begin a claim.

For more free advice on when you could make a hair dye injury claim, please get in touch.

How Much Compensation Can I Claim For Hair Dye Injuries?

The amount of compensation a claimant might receive for personal injuries from hair dye is based on two elements:

• General damages are claimable to cover your pain, suffering, and for loss of amenity.
• Special damages could be requested if you’ve lost any money or incurred expenses because of the injuries from the hair dye treatment. Examples in this category include any lost income, travel expenses or medical costs.

To determine how much will be claimed as general damages, you may be asked to have a medical assessment as part of the claims process. This can usually be arranged with a medical professional local to you by your appointed solicitor.

During your appointment, a medical expert will talk to you about how your injuries affected you. They’ll also look at your medical records. When they’ve finished, they’ll produce a medical report that will be passed to everybody involved with the claim.

What’s The Average Settlement Amount For Damage To The Scalp & Hair?

Compensation settlements (relating to general damages) for damage to the hair and scalp are advised by the Judicial College and demonstrated below. These amounts are for damage to the hair resulting in dermatitis, eczema, or tingling or ‘burning’ of the scalp, resulting in dry, brittle hair that breaks off and/or falls out, causing distress, depression, embarrassment, and loss of confidence, as well as inhibiting social life. In more serious situations, thinning persists and recovery prospects are poor, or sections of hair have been completely lost and regrowth is delayed.

• £7,340 to £11,020 compensation for severe damage to hair and scalp.
• £3,950 to £7,340 compensation for less serious damage.

In cases where there’s significant psychological damage or skin grafting was required, compensation may be higher.

Don’t worry if your injures are not as described as above, or you’ve suffered other injuries such as facial burns, burns to your hands or scarring, you could still be entitled to compensation and that’s why we would advise calling our advisors on 0800 652 8841 to double-check.

Evidence To Support A Hair Dye Injury Claim

It’s important to provide evidence when claiming compensation for any type of allergic reaction or injury from hair dye regardless of whether your hair was dyed at home or at a salon.

• Keep hold of any packaging and the dye kit contents if you were dying your hair at home.
• Visit a minor injuries unit or A&E to have your injuries treated. Medical records might be sought at a later date to establish how you were injured.
• Take photographs of your visible injuries. This is an important step that will help to show how you were affected.
• Retain the receipt for your treatment in a salon or for a shop-bought hair dye to prove where and when you purchased it.
• Collate any emails, texts or pamphlets you received from a beauty salon about your treatment (including texts about bookings).
• Keep a record of any expenses you incur because of your injuries.

It’s important to try and obtain as much evidence as possible to support your hair dye injury claim. When you’re ready, please get in touch and we’ll review your evidence with you to assess your chances of being compensated.

How Long Do I Have To Start A Compensation Claim?

Any type of personal injury claim will have an associated time limit. In hair dye claims, you’ll usually have 3-years to claim from:

• The date your hair was dyed; or
• The date your symptoms presented if this happened at a later date.

Our advice is to start the claims process as quickly as possible. One reason for this is that your solicitor will then have plenty of time to collect evidence and complete the required tasks before your claim is sent to the defendant. Another is that, if liability for your injuries is admitted, the defendant could be asked to provide an interim payment for private medical treatment if it will help you to recover from your symptoms sooner.

Please call if you have any questions about hair dye injury claim time limits.

Making A Hair Dye Injury Claim With A Personal Injury Solicitor

In most cases, if you claim against a beauty salon or a hair dye manufacturer, you’re going to need to convince their legal team or insurance company about why you should be compensated. This is something that can be quite difficult to achieve. Importantly, if you can’t do so successfully, you may not be compensated at all.

We suggest that you’ll have a better chance of succeeding if you have a personal injury solicitor working for you. If one of ours represents you, they’ll use their skills and experience to:

• Get a full understanding of how you’ve suffered.
• Collect evidence to back up your allegations.
• File the claim with the defendant in your case.
• Arrange an independent medical assessment.
• Keep you updated as your case progresses.
• Fight your corner if any queries or arguments are raised by the defendant.
• Try to secure the maximum level of compensation possible in your case.

Importantly, you’ll be able to ask any questions you think of as the case progresses.

No Win No Fee Hair Dye Claims

Let’s face it, nobody wants to lose money on solicitors fees when making a personal injury claim. We understand that and it’s the reason our solicitors offer No Win, No Fee claims.

If your claim is accepted, you won’t be asked to pay anything upfront. Instead, you’ll pay up to 25% of any compensation to your solicitor if they win your case. This is known as a success fee (explained here). You don’t have to pay this fee if your claim fails.

Before you agree to work with one of our solicitors, they’ll send you a Conditional Fee Agreement (CFA) to explain when you’ll need to pay them and the fee that will apply.

Please call if you’d like to check if you’re entitled to claim on a No Win, No Fee basis.

If you’re ready to begin a claim with us or you have any questions, please call today on 0800 652 8841. We’ll review your hair dye injury claim right away and could ask a No Win No Fee solicitor to start working on your case.