‘So many things can go wrong’ when removing tattoos in NZ
Skin care experts and respected tattoo industry figures say New Zealand’s unregulated tattoo removal industry is putting people at risk.
AChristchurch skin specialist is warning people are risking their health with unregulated tattoo removal. The laser techniqueis high risk, he says, but is almost entirely unchecked in New Zealand.
Dermatologist and Fellow of the Australian College of Physicians, Dr Ken Macdonald, has spoken out after The Press was contacted by a Christchurch woman who was left with a “scarred mess” following a tattoo removal.
“There are so many things that can go wrong, burns, infection, allergic reactions and more,” Dr Macdonald explained.
Elsewhere in the world there were quite prohibitive regulations, and New Zealand was an outlier, he added.
Emma* was an 18 year old high school student in year 13 when she got a bumblebee “the size of a two-dollar coin” tattooed on her hip. Once she had left school and entered the work force, it wasn’t long before she regretted her decision and wanted the tattoo gone.
In April 2018, she found herself at a Christchurch tattoo removalist’s small home studio.
Two years and 18 appointments later she was left with a scarred mess and over $1500 out of pocket. She felt her safety had been compromised.
“He used a microneedling pen on my tattoo until I bled, then lasered directly onto the open wound,” she said.
Still traumatised by her experience, Emma* asked not to be named by The Press.
In New Zealand, any person wanting to start a new business can purchase a laser online and treat people.
Tattoo removal is covered by the services guarantees in the Consumer Guarantees Act.
Minister of Commerce and Consumer Affairs, Andrew Bayly, said consumers can request that the issue be remedied or request a refund if the service is not “carried out with reasonable care and skill”.
However, personal injury caused by tattoo removal is not covered by the Act and affected people need to seek compensation from ACC.
In many other countries, the rules are far more stringent.
The US Food and Drug Administration regulates laser devices used to remove tattoos in America and requires them to be used by, or under the supervision of, a health care professional.
The director of Auckland and Christchurch-based Sacred Laser, Briar Neville, said she frequently had clients coming to her with wounds, burns, and scars.
Certified via the NZ Laser Training Institute and trained by the Aesthetics and Skin Institute and by a manufacturer of medical grade lasers, Neville said she’s seen first hand the harm caused by improper practice and has written to ACC on behalf of people making claims to get skin grafts due to bad lasering.
“There are too many cowboys out there,” she said.
She recalled horror stories of pets roaming through the treatment area of oper ators’ home studios, and a client being sent to the dairy to get bottled water for the laser machine when the user manual called for the use of a specific alkaline water.
Neville said Emma’s experience was terrifying.
“It’s a recipe for disaster. Once blood comes out of the skin there’s a huge risk of cross-contamination and chances are that person is not trained in managing it.”
Neville watches other removalists on social media, and has been shocked by what she sees.
This includes people without protective eyewear and mirrors in laser rooms, which could result in someone losing their eyesight if the laser was to misfire.
“I see these things daily.”
Neville believes regulation is needed. “All laser technology is not created equally. Anyone can jump on AliExpress, buy a $10,000 laser, open a clinic, and treat people with that laser. The high end, medical grade technology is closer to $150,000 to $350,000.”
Damage done by inept operators or cheap equipment was sometimes impossible to undo, she said.
Only four complaints have ever gone to the Health and Disability Commissioner involving laser tattoo removal. The Accident Compensation Corporation were unable to be definitive, but a search of its database using the term ‘laser tattoo removal’ revealed 19 claims since 2018.
However, senior clinical trainer at the NZ Laser Training Institute, Stacey Spencer-King, is another professional who has spoken to numerous people who have been affected by bad laser removal experiences.
She said damage was easily done to the skin when laser operators did not understand what they were doing, or if they were rushing.
“I’ve also seen necrosis, which is where the skin actually dies in patches. It never comes back.”
Spencer-King also backed regulation. Emma is now 25 and still trying to get past her tattoo removal experience seven
“It’s a recipe for disaster. Once blood comes out of the skin there’s a huge risk of cross-contamination and chances are that person is not trained in managing it.”
Briar Neville Sacred Laser director
years ago. “It’s been a few years now, but I was left with a scar more permanent than the initial tattoo I had.”
She was stunned to discover the industry was mostly unregulated.
“It's just unbelievable.”
Further regulation of the industry was a matter for local authorities, Andrew Bayly said.
The only council in the country to have a bylaw regulating laser tattoo removal is Auckland.
Christchurch City Council has no plans to introduce one.
Its Head of Strategic Policy and Resilience, David Griffiths, said “as a health service, laser tattoo removal and other laser related cosmetic procedures would come under the purview of the Ministry of Health.”
However, a spokesman from the office of Minister of Health Dr Shane Reti said it did not come under the remit of his department.
“Services provided by the personal appearance industry aren’t usually health services – unless the services are to promote or protect health, or to prevent disease or ill health.”
While no legislation was planned, the Minister’s office said it “recognised [laser tattoo removal] can have significant impacts both to individuals, and the health providers who then have to provide treatment.”
* Emma’s name has been changed.