[Direct answer]Claims for failed plastic surgery primarily involve distinguishing between two legal paths: "medical harm" and "consumer fraud". If the medical beauty institution and its medical staff commit faults during the treatment and cause harm to the patient, the institution shall bear compensation liability in accordance with Article 121 of the Civil Code of the People's Republic of China. The scope of compensation includes medical expenses, follow-up repair costs, loss of income, nursing care fees, etc. If serious mental harm is caused, the patient may also claim compensation for mental harm (Article 1183). If the institution lacks the corresponding qualifications, falsifies the doctor's qualifications, or uses counterfeit products, it constitutes fraud, and the patient may claim punitive damages of three times the price in accordance with Article 55 of the Consumer Rights and Interests Protection Law of the People's Republic of China. The steps for protecting rights are: sealing the medical records and copying all materials, applying for a medical harm appraisal, negotiating with the health and market supervision departments, and if no agreement is reached, suing the court. The patient can first file a complaint with the health and market supervision departments.Legal services for personal injury and medical disputesEvaluate the plan.

I. Problem Background and Typical Scenarios

The scale of medical cosmetic consumption is growing rapidly, and disputes over procedures such as double eyelid surgery, nose augmentation, liposuction, and injection fillers have also increased accordingly. Typical scenarios include: significant discrepancies between the postoperative results and preoperative promises, resulting in bilateral asymmetry, scar hyperplasia, and implant displacement; improper surgical procedures leading to infections, nerve damage, and even organ dysfunction; problems with hyaluronic acid and botox injections in unlicensed beauty salons and studios; and institutions exaggerating their claims, attracting customers with the title of "chief experts" while the actual practitioners lack the necessary qualifications. Patients often suffer both physical harm and psychological trauma, only to later discover missing medical records and confusion over the entity responsible for charging fees, making it extremely difficult to seek justice. Whether compensation can be obtained depends on accurately identifying the institution's faults, its qualifications, and its promotional practices.

II. Key points of contention

  • Determination of medical damages: In the case of surgical failure, it is necessary to distinguish between "the effect not meeting aesthetic expectations" and "damages caused by medical malpractice". The latter usually requires a medical damage appraisal to clarify the fault and causality. The appraisal opinion directly determines the success or failure of the compensation.
  • Qualifications and fraud issues: Whether the institution holds a "Medical Institution Practice License", and whether the operators have a physician's qualification and corresponding cosmetic chief diagnosis conditions; concealing qualification defects, fabricating physician titles, and using unlicensed products may constitute fraud.
  • The scope and amount of compensation: how to calculate the repair costs and the loss of working time, when to support compensation for mental damage, and how to grasp the applicable conditions of "one refund and three compensations" are all major disputes in negotiation and litigation.

III. Professional analysis by Henglue Lawyers

The first step of Henglu Law Firm in handling medical beauty disputes is to secure evidence: request the institution to copy and seal the outpatient medical records, surgical records, anesthesia records, implanted medical device barcodes, and payment receipts immediately, while preserving pre- and post-operative photos, consultation chat records, and screenshots of promotional pages. In terms of legal application, medical beauty institutions are classified as medical institutions, and the medical liability applies to any harm caused by their medical treatment. According to Article 121 of the Civil Code of the People's Republic of China, liability shall be borne according to fault. If there are circumstances such as violating laws and regulations and medical treatment norms, concealing or refusing to provide medical records, or losing, forging, or illegally destroying medical records, the institution shall be directly presumed to be at fault according to Article 122. Before performing surgery, special examinations, or special treatments, the institution shall, in accordance with Article 121, specifically explain the risks to the patient and obtain their clear consent. Failure to provide sufficient information constitutes a source of fault in itself. In terms of the nature of liability, if the institution conducts invasive projects without medical beauty qualifications, impersonates doctors, or uses smuggled or counterfeit injections, this constitutes fraudulent behavior, and according to Article 55 of the Consumer Rights and Interests Protection Law of the People's Republic of China, punitive damages of three times the service fee may be claimed, and compensation for personal injury shall be paid as usual. For claim preparation involving contract and promotional evidence review, relevant materials can be combined accordingly.Business and contract dispute services for enterprisesThe process of sorting out the transaction chain; for transactions involving institutions that have disappeared or complex entities, we can seek assistance from relevant parties.Special services and other case servicesThe team verifies the subject and the property clues.

IV. Practical suggestions and legal basis

At the legal basis level: Article 121 of the Civil Code of the People's Republic of China (effective January 1, 2021) establishes the liability for medical harm due to negligence; Article 122 stipulates the obligation of informed consent; Article 122 lists the circumstances of presumption of negligence; Article 1179 specifies the compensation items for personal injury, including medical expenses, nursing fees, and loss of income; Article 1183 stipulates that if serious mental harm is caused, the victim may request compensation for mental harm; Article 55 of the Consumer Rights and Interests Protection Law of the People's Republic of China stipulates that if the operator provides services with fraud, the consumer may request additional compensation, which shall be three times the actual cost. At the practical advice level: When seeking medical treatment, choose a formal institution with a "Medical Institution Practice License" and verify the physician's practice information; sign a preoperative informed consent form and keep a copy; if dissatisfied with the postoperative results, first raise objections in writing and do not easily sign the "one-time settlement" agreement prepared by the institution; for claims for repair costs, keep the diagnosis certificates and fee receipts from subsequent treatment institutions; apply for a medical harm appraisal in a timely manner to determine the degree of fault participation as the basis for claiming compensation.

5. Henglu Law Firm's Reminder

There are two things to avoid when seeking justice for medical beauty issues: first, losing evidence in the rush to repair the damage; and second, failing to complete the sealing of medical records and appraisal assessments before undergoing a second surgery. Secondly, trusting the institution's refund promises and missing the statute of limitations. The statute of limitations for seeking civil rights protection from the People's Court is three years (Article 188 of the Civil Code of the People's Republic of China), starting from the date when the victim knows or should have known that their rights have been infringed. If the institution is suspected of illegal medical practice, they can also report it to the health department at the same time, and the results of the administrative investigation can also feed back into the civil compensation claims. It is recommended to first have a lawyer evaluate the damage consequences and compensation scope before signing any settlement agreement, which can be done throughBeijing Henglu Law FirmMake an appointment for an interview.

Q1: Can I request a refund and triple compensation if the plastic surgery fails?

It depends on the specific circumstances. If the institution engages in fraudulent activities, such as conducting surgeries without medical and cosmetic qualifications, falsifying doctors' titles and qualifications, using counterfeit or smuggled injection products, or making promotions that severely deviate from the actual situation, the victim can claim three times the amount of the fees paid and request a refund according to Article 55 of the Consumer Rights and Interests Protection Law of the People's Republic of China. If the institution has all the necessary qualifications and the surgery results in damages due to medical negligence, the victim can claim compensation for the actual losses, including the paid surgery fees and other reasonable losses, but the three-fold punitive damages will not automatically apply. Whether it constitutes fraud depends on the comparison between the promotional records, qualification documents, and actual performance. It is recommended to first collect evidence before making a claim.

Q2: If the effect doesn't live up to what was advertised, does that count as a failed plastic surgery procedure?

Not necessarily. Medical cosmetology has both medical and consumer attributes. If the aesthetic effect does not meet expectations, if the institution's operations comply with regulations and fulfills its obligation to inform, it may only constitute a dispute at the level of the service contract, and the patient can claim for continued repair or a refund. Only when there are medical malpractices and resulting personal injuries, such as infections, scars, nerve damage, and organ dysfunction, does it constitute medical damage at the level of infringement. The judgment criteria mainly rely on medical damage appraisal. Therefore, keeping the promotional materials and communication commitments before the surgery, and raising objections in writing promptly after the surgery, are crucial for subsequent characterization, to avoid misrepresenting ordinary "dissatisfaction" as "damage" and affecting credibility.

Q3: What is the statute of limitations for medical beauty claims?

Three years. According to Article 188 of the Civil Code of the People's Republic of China, the statute of limitations for bringing a lawsuit to protect civil rights to the people's court is three years, calculated from the date when the right holder knows or should have known that the rights have been infringed and the obligee's identity has been identified. In some cases, medical beauty-related damages may not become apparent until months after the surgery or even after the repair fails. The statute of limitations starts from the date when the damage and the responsible party are clearly identified. However, the longer the delay, the worse the conditions for retrieving medical records, conducting appraisals, and obtaining evidence will be. It is recommended to seal the medical records as soon as possible after discovering the problem, send a letter to assert rights, and the letter and negotiation records can also play a role in interrupting the statute of limitations and restarting the calculation. It is crucial not to wait until the statute of limitations is about to expire before taking action.

Q4: If there's a problem with the hyaluronic acid injection at the beauty salon, who should I seek compensation from?

Find actual beauty salons and operators. Life beauty institutions do not have the qualifications to carry out injection-based medical beauty projects. Carrying out such projects without authorization constitutes illegal medical practice, and those who cause damage shall bear compensation liability according to law; if they falsify the product sources or impersonate medical qualifications, they may also constitute fraud, and triple compensation may be claimed. When making a claim, first confirm the payment recipient and the actual operator. Many studios use personal accounts for receipt of payments, so it is necessary to identify the responsible party through transfer records, in-store announcements, and chat records. At the same time, complaints and reports can be made to the health and health departments and market supervision departments. The materials of administrative investigations can be used as evidence in civil litigation.

Q5: What evidence materials are required for making a claim?

It is recommended to prepare based on six categories: 1. Evidence of the subject and qualifications: information from the institution's "Medical Institution Practice License", and the results of the physician's practice registration query; 2. Evidence of the service relationship: contracts, payment receipts, and records of the receiving account; 3. Evidence of the medical treatment process: outpatient medical records, surgical records, anesthesia records, and medical device barcodes. If these cannot be copied, immediately apply for their preservation; 4. Evidence of the harm caused: pre- and post-operative photos, diagnostic certificates, and follow-up repair medical records and expense receipts; 5. Evidence of promotions and promises: advertising pages, chat records with consultants, and audio recordings; 6. Evidence of the negotiation process: letters of objection and complaint receipts. Once all the evidence is in place, it is advisable to initiate appraisal and claim procedures, as this significantly increases the chances of success.

If you are facing similar problems, it is recommended that you consult a professional lawyer as soon as possible with the evidence materials, so as to avoid missing the statutory time limit. →Personal injury legal services·Beijing Henglue Law Firm