Glasgow hairdresser pays the price for injuring client

Mrs Robertson was visiting a well-known hair salon in Glasgow for a cut and colour but was injured during the treatment.

She had visited the salon before to discuss the style she wanted but left not only with a totally different look but with injuries that will last a lifetime.

Hairdresser burned scalp by bleaching

The day after getting her hair done, Lisa noticed her scalp was red and irritable. She went to her local GP who diagnosed her with burns to her scalp as the result of the bleach used during the hairdressing treatment.

This has left Lisa with permanent scarring to her scalp which will continue to be sensitive and itchy. It has also been recommended that she doesn’t colour her hair again.

“I remember thinking the bleach was left on for a long time and he ended up using a stronger bleach for the back of my hair. My scalp had big blisters and I was in a lot of pain afterwards.”

Lisa was understandably self-conscious afterwards

As well as the pain and discomfort, the injuries caused by the negligence of the hairdresser had a negative impact on what Lisa could do and what she would do before it happened.

“I was very self-conscious and didn’t go out as much because of it. It was very itchy and very uncomfortable and definitely impacted on my life and what I would do normally.”

Hairdresser at fault for burns

Hair salon are accountable because they failed to apply chemical products with care and their failure to ensure that the products were not applied for such an excessive amount of time as that may cause an injury.

“I think it happens quite often that people don’t know what they are doing or say they can do something they can’t and other people suffer the consequences and get injured.

“People don’t need to put up with other people’s mistakes.”

Claim for burn injuries caused by hairdresser

Jennifer Watson, personal injury lawyer at Digby Brown’s Dundee office, specialises in beauty injuries and after reviewing the case, pursued an injury claim against the salon on behalf of Mrs Robertson.

“My brother is a personal injury lawyer and advised me to speak to a lawyer who deals with that type of claim at Digby Brown.

“I had no expectations really when I made a claim. I hoped they would admit fault. When I first visited the salon they loathed to even give me a refund at all. When I told them about the burns, they just advised how I could treat it, they didn’t say they had done anything wrong.”

Compensation for hairdresser injury

The salon firmly denied any responsibility for Lisa’s injuries and refused to pay any compensation. Our in-house specialist solicitor raised court proceedings and initially they maintained they were not at fault.

In the end, we secured liability and £5,000 in compensation for Mrs Robertson.

“Jennifer Watson was absolutely fantastic, so supportive and always answered my queries promptly and very politely.

“I’m really pleased with the outcome and I can’t stress enough how pleased I am with how Jennifer dealt with my claim, she was absolutely terrific.

“I would advise anyone who was injured due someone else’s mistake to take action and go to Digby Brown.”