Tanning Salon Injury Claims Guide

By Stephen Burke. Last Updated 3rd April 2024. If you have suffered burns from a sunbed, you may be wondering if you could be eligible to receive compensation. In order to have a valid personal injury claim, you would need to prove that your injuries were caused by the salon breaching their duty of care.

Within this guide, we will share the duty of care that salons owe you and when you may be eligible to make a claim for your sunbed burns. Additionally, we will discuss the evidence that you could gather to help support your case. We will also provide information on how compensation is calculated for successful personal injury claims. Finally, we will discuss how one of our solicitors could help you with claiming compensation on a No Win No Fee basis.

If you have any specific questions that you would like answered or to receive free advice for your potential claim, you can contact our advisory team. They can be reached 24/7 by:

An empty sunbed inside a tanning salon

Select A Section

  1. What Is The Eligibility Criteria For Tanning Salon Injury Claims?
  2. What Evidence Can Help Prove I Suffered A Sunbed Burn?
  3. Compensation Amounts For Tanning Salon Injury Claims
  4. No Win No Fee Claims For Sunbed Burns
  5. Essential Resources Relating To Sunbed Burns

What Is The Eligibility Criteria For Tanning Salon Injury Claims?

In public areas, including a tanning salon, the controller of the space owes you a duty of care under the Occupiers’ Liability Act 1957. This means that under their duty, the controller should take steps to ensure your reasonable safety while you’re in the public space. To fulfil this duty of care, a tanning salon company may take steps such as regularly inspecting equipment used and ensuring there are no tripping hazards in each room.

If you do suffer an injury while at a tanning salon, such as a sunbed burn, then you may have valid grounds to claim compensation from the salon if you can establish the following:

  • You were owed a duty of care by the tanning salon.
  • This duty of care was breached by the salon.
  • Your injuries occurred because of this breach.

For more advice on the eligibility requirements for making a tanning salon injury claim, please read on or contact our advisors for free either online or on the phone.

Claim Time Limits For Sunbed Burns

If you have been burnt from sunbeds, as with any personal injury claim, you’ll typically have three years from the date you were injured to take action. The limitation period is outlined in the Limitation Act 1980.

A litigation friend, who can be anyone appointed by the court, may also start a claim on the behalf of someone lacking the mental capacity to make their own claim. The time limit is also suspended in these circumstances unless the claimant becomes mentally capable of beginning their own claim.

Whatever time limit applies to your sunbed burn claim, it would be in your best interest to act as soon as possible to prevent the claim from being statute-barred. If you are working with a personal injury lawyer, they can let you know what time limit applies to your circumstances.

Speak to our advisors at any time and they could connect you with one of our experienced No Win No Fee lawyers.

What Evidence Can Help Prove I Suffered A Sunbed Burn?

Not every burn from a sunbed could lead to a successful claim. You would need to prove that you were burnt on a sunbed because of someone’s negligence to be eligible to make a claim for a sunbed burn. 

In order to make a successful personal injury claim, you will need to provide evidence of your injury and the negligence that caused it. Some examples of evidence include:

  • Photographs of the sunbed burn
  • Evidence of you having sought treatment e.g. a medical report
  • Witness statements
  • Photographs of what caused your sunbed burn

Further to this, if you’ve suffered financial harm from being burnt on a sunbed, such as losing out on income, you would need to evidence this. Payslips and bank statements could help with this. 

Should you wish to get an idea of whether you have enough evidence to make a claim for a burn from a sunbed, please call our team. Our advisors can provide free legal advice on all aspects of personal injury claims.

Compensation Amounts For Tanning Salon Injury Claims

If you successfully claim compensation for sunbed burns, your payout could include general damages and special damages.

General damages provides compensation for the pain and suffering caused by your injuries. Those calculating this head of your claim may refer to the Judicial College Guidelines (JCG) as guidance.

The JCG provides guideline compensation brackets for different injuries at various severities. Below, you will find figures from the 16th edition of the JCG, published in 2022, aside from the first figure. However, this is only guidance. The amount you could receive would depend on the unique circumstances of your case. The first entry in the table is not based on the JCG.

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Injury Notes Compensation
Multiple serious injuries with financial costs and losses. A combination of serious injuries that cause significant pain and suffering, and lead to costs and losses such as lost wages, corrective treatment, and travel expenses, for example. Up to £100,000+
Scarring Burn injuries. How much of the body is burnt will affect the amount awarded. Likely to exceed £104,830
Scarring A large number or scars or a single noticeable scar with a severe disfiguring effect. £7,830 to £22,730
Scarring A single noticeable scar or multiple scar anywhere on the body with minor cosmetic effects. £2,370 to £7,830
Very severe facial scarring Typically younger more sensitive claimants fall into this bracket where psychological impact is great £29,780 to £97,330
Less Severe facial scarring There is a substantial disfigurement and a significant psychological reaction. £17,960 to £48,420
Significant facial scarring Worst effects reduced through plastic surgery, but some cosmetic disability remains. £9,110 to £30,090
Less significant facial scarring A number of very small scars or a singular scar that do not markedly affect appearance. £3,950 to £13,740
Trivial facial scarring The effect is only minor. £1,710 to £3,530
Injuries affecting sight (g) Permanent albeit minor impairment of vision in one or both eyes £9,110 to £20,980
Injuries affecting sight (i) Eye injuries which heal within a few weeks £2,200 to £3,950

As mentioned, your claim could also result in compensation under the head of claim known as special damages. This compensates you for the monetary costs and losses incurred due to your injuries. 

These costs and losses could include:

  • Loss of earnings – You may have lost out on pay if you had to take time off due to your injuries. 
  • Travel expenses – You may have incurred travel costs if you’ve needed to pay to get to medical appointments, for example.
  • Medical expenses – You might have had to pay for prescription medicines due to your injuries, for example.

You will need to provide proof that any costs and losses incurred were directly caused by your injuries. Documents, including receipts and payslips, could be useful in this regard.

If you would like a personalised estimate of your compensation for a sunbed injury or have questions about claiming, please contact an advisor.

Personal injury solicitor at desk preparing for tanning salon injury claim

No Win No Fee Claims For Sunbed Burns

If you have suffered injuries due to being burnt from a sunbed and you meet the criteria to make a personal injury claim, you could seek support from a solicitor. Our advisors can assess your claim, and if they think you have a strong case, they could connect you with one of our experienced solicitors.

Additionally, they may offer to represent you on a No Win No Fee basis with a Conditional Fee Agreement (CFA). Under such an agreement, you won’t be required to pay any upfront or ongoing fees for the solicitor’s services. Furthermore, if your claim is unsuccessful, then you won’t be required to pay your solicitor for the work they have provided.

If your claim is successful, then a success fee will be paid to your solicitor. This is a small and legally capped percentage taken from the compensation awarded to you.

For more details about making a claim with a No Win No Fee solicitor, please contact our advisors:

Essential Resources Relating To Sunbed Burns

Welcome to this last section of our guide to tanning salon injury claims. We’ve included some more guides you may find useful.

Thank you for reading our guide to tanning salon injury claims and sunbed burn claims. Hopefully, you now have an answer to your questions. For example. ‘I got burnt on a sunbed, can I sue a tanning salon for burns?’