Can I recover damages from a nail salon who ruined my nail permanently?

[VioletteValentia]

I’ve always work false nails until recently due to somewhere I was studying being against them. I recently went to a wedding and my partner’s mom booked me in to have a full set. I’d never been to the salon before. It was a “Chinese” salon, and I’ve since heard horrible things about these, but hadn’t had any experience before.

I was immediately uncomfortable because I noticed after cutting my skin the instruments weren’t sterilised. I’m a clean freak and that made me feel sick (and I’m now paranoid about all sorts of viruses).

Anyway, the nails looked fine when they were done. A couple of days later, I caught one of them. It lifted my nail off. My actual, natural nail. There was loads of blood and it was incredibly painful, and I’ve had it looked at by an expert who thinks it’ll never grow back because it’s damaged the nail plate. A friend of mine who’s a nail tech said they use a cheap, crap acrylic that isn’t meant for nails, since it’s too strong and ruins them.

I’m really upset by this, I know it’s only a nail and nothing serious but I’ve always enjoyed having my nails done and my one nail is ruined.

Can I do anything legally? I’ve googled and the chemical is banned in the US but not here.

Pics attached.

My daughter often gets gel nails done at the kind of salon you mention. They wear masks because of all the nail dust when they use their tools, not just because of the chemicals. They wouldnt want to be breathing in acetone all day anyway even if that was all they use, so unless someone has examined their stuff then nobody knows what they use. She caught one nail on her sheet and it ripped the nail and her natural nail. It grew back book obviously took months.

On recommendations and reviews, she has been using Primark false glue-on pre-painted nails and not only are they only about a pound or so, they are easy to apply, last ages, look good and don't damage the nail so you could try those.

metro.co.uk/2017/09/14/beauty-lovers-are-going-crazy-for-primarks-1-false-nail-range-6924933/

Your friend is right - these salon are awful. The acrylic they use is cheap grade not for nails and it is highly toxic - were they wearing masks?

Yes, they were. I’ll definitely be reporting it.

I just want to say about the mask thing ... it can be a red flag, if it's along with other signs to be wary of, ie - very cheap, very quick, all non English speaking girls, ect.

However it can be that the mask is being used simply to avoid breathing in dust. Dust is inevitable with filing. Don't condemn all mask wearing nail techs :)

Laiste that’s fair. In this case, it was the top scenario, but yes some people can wear masks and not be dodgy of course!

Also if you want to think about suing you’d better educate yourself on exactly the process used in applying nail extensions there is no glue at all with sculptured nails and only a dot of glue used with tips (more fool you if you had a set of tips yuck!) the MMA is the liquid they mix with the acrylic powder not glue it’s an astringent type liquid chemical

Really, you're so worried about your nail yet you suspect s modern slavery operation?!!!!!

And when someone suggests you report it you ask who to?!!!

It took me 5 seconds to type into my search engine 'how do I report modern slavery' and come up with this -

www.gov.uk/government/publications/how-to-report-modern-slavery

Stop bleating about your nail and do something to help them.

Ugh . . . I visited one of these places when my usual nail bar didn't have any availability. MISTAKE. The "shellac" wouldn't come off with acetone and I ended up having to have most of it filed away, inevitably damaging my nails (which are a lot thinner and even painful in spots now).

I don't know if you'll successfully be able to claim from the salon, OP, but good luck! It makes me annoyed that just one visit to this nail bar ruined my own nails and it will take months to grow out - it's not a major drama, in the grand scheme of things, but irritating because it's painful.

Any need for that aggression blue? I’m allowed to be annoyed that something I paid for has damaged my nail and been poor quality, and is painful.

Ive done my own gel polish using proper makes and I couldnt get most of it off wth acetone either

muncheys OP said they used a powder. It must have been acrylics.

Its a vvv common problem with false nails and something i see daily. False nails are known to not be good for your nails. The nail salon would argue you knew false nails arent good for your nails and you caused the damage by the accident. Be very hard to prove.

Your nail will definitely grow back.

I caught my big toenail jumping out of a boat and ripped it clean off, there was nothing left at all. The agony when I hit the salt water and couldn't understand why.

It grew back from the bed of the nail area upwards and quite quickly although it had ridges in it for months afterwards.

False nails are NOT bad for your nails. It's bad products, bad application and not taking care of them that is bad for your nails! I have had acrylics on for years and my nails underneath are lovely and strong. You shouldn't need to wear masks if you're using good products, none of the ladies at my salon wear them.

Get some actual legal advice if you want to seek redress against the nail bar. You can't privately sue for "ABH" - ABH is an offence under criminal law, not civil law.

You could, potentially, sue for damages for pain and suffering, and I guess maybe for the permanent cosmetic issue of the fingernail not growing back, but you'd need medical evidence that it def wasn't going to grow back (and that means time + doctor opinion, not just that of a beauty therapist, however senior), evidence of what products were used, evidence that it's not standard (or even not allowed) to use those products, and evidence that your actual nail would have been substantially less likely to be ripped off along with the acrylic if different products had been used.

Re the sterilising, I'm not clear from your previous posts how you discovered the instruments weren't sterilised, as it's not something you can just see. Did you see them being used on multiple customers without being sterilised? If so, you need to get onto local trading standards asap.

Also the whole nail will not come off if proper products are used. I've broken nails loads of times and the acrylic just comes off, I've never lost a nail.

I would agree that acrylics shouldn't do much damage to your nails. Mine are very weak but they are much better than they ever were as they're staying out of my mouth! Plus I can see them improving and getting less bendy and frail. I'm under no illusions they could be better but the acrylic is helping me protect them from myself!

Re the sterilising, I'm not clear from your previous posts how you discovered the instruments weren't sterilised, as it's not something you can just see. Did you see them being used on multiple customers without being sterilised? If so, you need to get onto local trading standards asap.

They just picked them up, used them, put them down and used them on the next person. My nail lady always has them in barbicide.

I’ve seen this happen to lots of people but have never known anyone to be permanently damaged by it. It may take awhile to grow back normally but you’d be very unlucky For it to be permanent

I have really strong nails. All I do is apply oil on the cuticle and avoid water! (I generally keep a couple of coats of clear polish on them to stop water from softening them.)

Had a horse tread on my toenail once - it went black and was partially separated so a surgeon took the whole nail off - it grew back in full - they always do

Glad to hear it will probably grow back!

You def need to get on to trading standards asap about the lack of sterilisation - that's the really worrying bit, to be honest.

I agree with all the PPs that the nail will prob grow back

Generally when you sue someone for compensation it is to recover losses with only a very small sum for pain and suffering. If you have no financial loss then I would struggle to see how you will prove that the accident would have had a different outcome had the nail been constructed differently when the process is, as you say, legal in the U.K.

I have been using a salon similar to this for years, not ideal I know but it’s easy, drop in and friendly. I’ve never had an issue but then I’ve never had an accident with a nail. Previously I used a nail technician working alone using the ‘safer’ technique you describe and frankly I often lost a nail or two before each appointment (the artificial part, not the whole nail).

So you’d need to see a solicitor, be examined by an expert in nail care who specialises in nail litigation and go through all sorts to gain a small sum if you were lucky. The lawyers might make a tidy sum though.

Am I at risk of getting sick? They didn’t break my skin/I had no cuts, but as soon as I noticed they didn’t put them in barbicide and used them straight away on someone else, I felt sick. I get very nervous about germs (I carry hand gel!) and this has really worried me.

You knew what these places are like and still went. You could have said, to your mother in law to go elsewhere. As a beautician I always recommend people go to places that are credited by the guild or babtac or equivalent. Don't enter a salon without this!