AGE 17 & OFFERED LIP FILLERS WITH NO CHECKS ON ID

ROGUE beauty salons could be flouting the law by offering potentially dangerous lip fillers to underage teens without checking their ID.

- SASKIA ROWLANDS

We contacted 50 clinics across England and the vast majority didn't ask for age verification, despite it being illegal to inject under-18s.

Experts fear for youngsters' safety as social media pressures drive them to cheap deals.

Fillers can cause extreme swelling, blood clots and even blindness.

The Government guidance states: "It is a criminal offence to administer botulinum toxin (commonly known as 'Botox') or a filler by way of injection for a cosmetic purpose to a person under 18 in England, even if they have the permission of someone over 18.

"It is also an offence to make arrangements or book an appointment to provide these treatments to anyone under the age of 18 in England." The influence of reality stars such as Kylie Jenner, who had her lips enlarged aged 17, has led to a surge in demand for the procedures - often carried out in hair salons and in living rooms.

Our reporter approached over 50 practitioners seeking to book lip filler consultations for her "younger sister".

We then visited eight clinics with two 17-year-old girls, Ula and Lulu.

It is against the law for under-18s to receive dermal fillers for cosmetic reasons in England.

Even just making arrangements is a contravention of the Botulinum Toxin and Cosmetic Fillers (Children) Act 2021. It is not enough for the practitioner or business to decide that the young person looks to be over 18- they must take steps and check documents to make sure they are certain the person is 18 or over to avoid breaking the law.

But we found just nine practitioners of the 50 - less than a quarter - asked the girls' age or ID when booking.