I had 11 treatments with ALC and it has left me with patchy hair all over my face. I’m also out thousands of bucks.
I want justice. From my experience and others I’ve read here ALC is guilty of malpractice and fraud.
Is anyone a lawyer or married to one?
You can definitely find lots of people to join this judging from many negative posts on these forums. The problem though is you have to have a pretty solid case, and everyone has different issues with them. Plus, in your specific case, you would have to find some material they put out that promises something other than what you received as a result.
They advertised and promised “permanent hair removal.” I have the literature and contracts which state this. I feel I was also not properly informed on the procedure. There was no indication that patchiness would be a side effect; later when I complained I was told this was a normal side effect?. There are a lot of other issues as well.
laser is only approved for “permanent hair reduction”, so if they used the word “permanent removal”, you should definitely have a case.
here’s a recent article on this chain with quotes from a former employee. you can also submit your stories:
http://abclocal.go.com/kgo/story?section=7on_your_side&id=4188921
I talked to a lawyer who will take the case but thinks it’d be better to sue them together with other patients. Anyone out there had similar experiences with ALC?
When laser companies promise “permanent hair reduction”, how much of a reduction can the patient expect? I have never read whether it is a 10, 50 or 90 percent reduction from the original amount of hair. Does anyone ever ask for a clarification in writing before signing the contract and starting treatments?
I don’t think any of the spas or strip mall type places could answer those questions. Maybe if you went to a laser medical center that only allows MDs to perform the consult and procedure could you get answers to such questions. And only then with regards to that specific clinic and laser. Results vary from person to person, study to study, laser to laser. Also no studies track longer than 18 months to 2 years so forget any clinical evidence of long term results, just anecdotal.
The reason I feel wronged is that I was promised “permanent hair removal” (in writing) and also told I was an “ideal candidate.” It was explained to me that the only hairs that survived each treatment were dormant ones. Supposedly after 3-6 treatments 6 weeks apart, all dormant hairs have time to grow out and have been targeted.
However when I started complaining after 8 treatments I was told a different story. ALC said patchiness is a known side effect, blah, blah, and tried selling me some microderm and IPL treatments?! I did a few more treatments on a more powerful laser but still poor results. ALC never allowed me to see their MD either.
you do have a case if they said “removal” not “reduction” in writing, because they’re not allowed to by FDA and law. Other things are hard to impossible to prove because of so much variation.
Yes, innuendo and how America puts so much blind trust in new technologies makes that ‘Permanent Hair Reduction’ play heavily in the minds of those looking for a quick fix. Truth is, no matter how one removes 100 individual hairs, not all will grow back. This is true of waxing, rotary epilating, lasering, threading, etc. So even salon waxers could claim the ‘Permanent Hair Reduction’ banner. Most any hair removal discipline could. To say that some lasers were allowed to use this by the FDA says nothing. It really doesn’t. Anybody know someone that has tweezed theireyebrows into oblivian. We all do …Permanent Hair Reduction, but that method only costs a buck fifty, not $1,500.00 and some serious accelerated skin aging.
Mantaray
Did you personally experience any skin aging from your 5 treatments? No. No basis for saying that.