Hi Guys,
We thought we'd pop on and add to this thread :biggrin: You will always need to check with your individual insurer as to their own policy, however we wanted to confirm that our policy is for you to follow the manufacturers' instructions when it comes to patch testing.
For your info, the reason that we ask you to follow manufacturers' guidelines is that under UK and EU laws, manufacturers' are required to carry out extensive testing prior to bringing a product to market, to ensure it is safe and fit for purpose; during that testing, they will form guidelines for each specific product, based on a number of things including reactions and potential reactions from the test group. Individual products and formulas will contain chemicals which have the potential to cause reaction and the manufacturer themselves is best placed to assess the likelihood of this occurring. We do not carry out the same tests on products as it would be too expensive for any insurance company to do, therefore we believe that the manufacturer is best placed to advise on the application of a product. If they are advising to patch test 48 hours prior to the treatment, then this is the advice you need to follow as the instruction will be included to reduce risk.
We appreciate this will have cost and time implications and may result in lost business, however consumer safety is key and a patch test is a good way to reduce risk for them and you.
As an aside, when it comes to insurance claims involving patch testing, many will use training as a defence advising 'my trainer told me I needed to patch test once' or similar. In these cases, commonly accepted industry practices will be expected regardless of the quality of training, as will an assurance that you follow manufacturers' / product guidelines. This is to prevent poor quality training becoming a defence for poor practice and isn't just a beauty industry measure, but a standard insurance practice.
Hope this helps!
The BABTAC Team