- in European Union
Societal demand for surgical and non-surgical procedures has increased in recent years, influenced by prevailing beauty ideals and celebrity endorsements. This has been accompanied by a rise in advertising for these procedures. For cosmetic surgery, the ASA also sees many services based abroad targeting people in the UK, and it is becoming increasingly common for people to travel abroad for treatment.
Both surgical and non-surgical procedures carry several risks for consumers. Non-surgical liquid BBLs are an unregulated procedure in the UK and can carry significant health risks such as infections, sepsis and embolism, while pre- and post-operative standards of care abroad may differ from those in the UK.
The ASA and CAP have now published two reports following wide‑scale monitoring of cosmetic procedure advertising.
Non‑surgical liquid BBL advertising: major compliance failures
Between April–December 2025, CAP used its Active Ad Monitoring AI system to review over 900 ads for non‑surgical liquid BBLs. Only 11.5% complied with the Advertising Code. The key breaches were:
- Time‑limited pressure tactics, e.g. "limited slots available – don't sleep on it!"
- Risk‑trivialising claims, such as "0% infection rate" or describing the procedure as "safe". Liquid BBLs are unregulated in the UK and carry risks including infection, sepsis and embolism.
- Body‑image exploitation, with claims like "transform your body effortlessly" or "boost your confidence".
Enforcement actions
- CAP instructed six clinics to amend/remove ads; three complied, three were escalated to Meta, which removed the ads.
- Nine further advertisers received guidance after being identified as having previously run irresponsible ads.
Regulatory context
From 2026, government measures will require that only CQC‑registered healthcare professionals may administer high‑risk procedures like liquid BBLs. The ASA believes that this will strengthen protections for consumers and contribute to raising advertising standards in this area.
Cosmetic surgery abroad: compliance improvements (but risks remain)
A second ASA/CAP report examined UK‑targeted advertising by overseas cosmetic clinics.
- CAP captured 4,000+ paid ads from December 2024–December 2025 (source: complementary industry reporting).
- Compliance has improved following targeted enforcement, although risks remain where messaging downplays travel‑related risks, variable standards of care abroad, and post‑operative support concerns.
- The ASA emphasises that cosmetic surgery is a serious medical procedure, not a beauty treatment, and ads must reflect this reality.
It's important that advertising claims do not downplay risks of medical or cosmetic procedures. Claims linking cosmetic procedures to confidence, self‑esteem, or body transformation can breach social responsibility rules. For liquid BBLs and cosmetic surgery abroad, the ASA is applying heightened scrutiny with active monitoring tools. It has issued guidance on advertising cosmetic procedures and on medical procedures.
The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.
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