Tighter rules planned to protect people from cosmetic surgery that goes badly wrong

From 2027, England plans to control who can perform high-risk cosmetic procedures. Liquid Brazilian butt lifts would legally count as cosmetic surgery, while risky treatments such as deep chemical peels and vampire facials would be restricted to trained healthcare professionals. The aim is to protect people from treatments that can cause severe harm or death.

Only doctors could perform fillers injected into body areas other than the face, including liquid BBLs. Doctors, dentists, and some trained nurses, midwives and pharmacists could perform listed high-risk non-surgical or wellbeing treatments. Cosmetic surgery and risky treatments would also be banned for under-18s.

The government began consulting on reforms in 2023. Draft rules will be discussed with doctors, businesses, regulators, the public and experts before plans go through Parliament in spring 2027. Rogue providers could face criminal offences and fixed fines of up to £4,000.

These procedures change the body or skin without always using conventional surgery. Liquid Brazilian butt lifts use dermal fillers injected into the buttocks to alter their size or shape. Vampire facials use a patient’s own blood, processed to separate platelet-rich plasma, which is injected into the face through tiny needle punctures.

Dermal micro-coring removes tiny sections of skin with thin, hollow needles. The sections are small enough to allow scarless healing. Chemical peels use a chemical solution to remove the top layers of skin, creating a resurfacing treatment.

The government classifies some of these procedures as high-risk because they can cause serious complications when performed unsafely. Under the proposed rules, liquid BBLs would be treated as cosmetic surgery. Deep chemical peels, vampire facials and dermal micro-coring would face professional restrictions.

The proposed rules divide high-risk procedures according to their legal classification and risk. Fillers injected into body parts other than the face, including liquid BBLs, would be defined as cosmetic surgery. Only doctors could perform that type of procedure. The government says proper training is essential for safer care.

Other high-risk non-surgical or wellbeing treatments would have a wider approved group. Trained doctors, dentists, and some nurses, midwives and pharmacists could perform deep chemical peels, vampire facials, dermal micro-coring and some laser procedures. The professionals would need relevant training before offering them.

The proposals do not mean every doctor could automatically perform cosmetic surgery safely. Keith Allison of the Royal College of Surgeons of England warned that holding a medical licence alone should not be enough. The government will consult professionals, businesses, regulators, the public and experts before Parliament considers the plans.

The proposed rules target both unsafe providers and treatments involving children. Rogue operators would face new criminal offences and fixed fines of up to £4,000. This is intended to make it harder for unqualified people to offer procedures that can cause serious injury, illness or death.

High-risk cosmetic surgery and treatments would be banned for under-18s. The government already says lip fillers and face Botox on children have been stopped. The wider proposal would cover procedures such as liquid BBLs, deep chemical peels, vampire facials, dermal micro-coring and some laser treatments.

The measures are planned for England and are not yet final law. The government will ask healthcare professionals, businesses, regulators, the public and other experts to comment on draft rules. The plans are then expected to go through Parliament in spring 2027, while a Botox-clinic licensing scheme has already been announced.

Cosmetic procedures can become life-threatening when they are not performed safely. Reported consequences include severe pain, permanent scarring and serious medical complications. The article also records sepsis, organ failure, a collapsed lung, a heart attack, coma and death.

Sasha Dean was left in a coma after receiving a liquid BBL in 2024. Some of her treatment took place in a private house, and she developed sepsis. She said she had a heart attack, one lung collapsed, her kidneys were failing and her body was shutting down. Alice Webb died within hours of receiving a liquid BBL that year.

A liquid BBL injects dermal fillers into the buttocks, so unsafe treatment can have severe consequences. The proposed rules would limit high-risk procedures to trained professionals and restrict them for under-18s. The government says this would help protect people from treatments that can go badly wrong.

Dangerous cosmetic treatments have been carried out in unusual places because England currently has no restrictions on who may perform many “no scalpel” procedures. That gap allows unqualified or rogue providers, described as “cosmetic cowboys”, to offer treatments outside established clinical settings.

The article reports procedures taking place in Airbnbs, hotel rooms, garden sheds and even public toilets. Sasha Dean also said some of her liquid BBL treatment happened in a private house. These locations can be linked to providers operating outside the formal controls proposed by the government, although the article does not explain every individual case.

The reported stories have increased pressure for stricter regulation. Women told the BBC about dangerous complications, pain and permanent scarring after treatment by rogue operators. The planned rules would set professional requirements, create offences and fines, and limit high-risk procedures to specified trained healthcare professionals.

Professional training reduces risk by making sure approved practitioners understand the procedures they offer. The proposed rules would allow only trained professionals to perform listed high-risk treatments. They would also define liquid BBLs as cosmetic surgery, so only doctors could perform them.

Safe clinical settings matter because the article describes procedures being carried out in private houses, Airbnbs, hotel rooms, garden sheds and public toilets. Regulation can set clearer expectations for where treatment happens and who is responsible. Scotland’s laws already require cosmetic procedures to be performed by, or alongside, certain healthcare professionals in a registered setting.

Legal regulation also creates consequences when providers ignore safety requirements. England’s proposals include new criminal offences and fixed fines of up to £4,000. They would ban high-risk cosmetic procedures for under-18s and give people clearer ways to identify qualified providers, although the final rules still need consultation and parliamentary approval.