September 26, 2006 - Law firm warns against holiday boob ops

Women who travel overseas for cheap cosmetic surgery deals are leaving themselves exposed to the risk of being unable to obtain legal support if their operations go wrong.

That’s the warning issued today by Manchester-based TJ Legal Solicitors, which last year became the first firm in the UK to provide specialist legal support for cosmetic surgery negligence claims.

TJ Legal has received scores of enquiries from women who have had botched operations at clinics abroad, and many are now finding it difficult to make a legal claim for compensation to enable them to have corrective surgery.

“In many cases, the surgeon and clinic are operating outside of the law of England and Wales, so people will need to instruct foreign lawyers,” said TJ Legal partner Mike Saul. “It isn’t easy for people to work with lawyers in foreign countries, with different languages, laws and cultures. And that’s before you start to think about the cost that you would incur in doing so.

“Although many surgeons operating abroad are competent and skilled, standards of training, treatment and aftercare can vary from country to country, so people are at risk of being left with sub-standard results. Plus, some foreign clinics are turning a blind eye to responsible aftercare by allowing patients to fly back straight away after their surgery.”

One woman who contacted TJ Legal had travelled to Cyprus for surgery to her nose. Not happy with the result of the first operation, she returned for corrective work. Her nose collapsed and she needed it to be repaired by two NHS surgeons.

In another case, a 28-year-old who went to the Czech Republic suffered from a breast implant that became infected. It had to be removed and she now has odd-sized breasts – one 32B and the other 32E.

And an English woman flew almost 7,000 miles to Argentina for surgery to her breasts. The lady claims that she didn’t receive any care following the operation and ended up with a severe infection.

“Women – and indeed men – who are keen to have operations are being attracted overseas by the lower prices charged by clinics on the continent,” added Saul. “People are even going as far away as Asia and South America to save on the cost.

“The whole situation, of course, isn’t helped by the way that some companies are glamorising cosmetic surgery, bundling operations with holidays abroad.

“However, the reality is that cosmetic surgery can involve major operations. We would warn anyone considering heading abroad to thoroughly research the clinic and surgeon.”

TJ Legal’s service supports men and women by obtaining compensation to enable them to have corrective surgery and receive financial payments to cover any loss of earnings that they might have experienced.

Anyone who believes they have suffered from cosmetic surgery negligence has up to three years from the date of the operation or knowledge of negligence to make a claim.