A cosmetic clinic in Sydney and the Gold Coast offered ‘boob jobs for the cost of a cup of coffee a day’. Now it must pay $25million after ruining the lives of more than 1,000 women
A cosmetic clinic that offered ‘breast corrections for the price of a cup of coffee a day’ has been ordered to pay more than 1,000 former patients $25 million.
The NSW Supreme Court this week signed off on the settlement against The Cosmetic Institute (TCI), which was found to have ‘ruined’ the lives of the clients that formed the 2017 class action.
TCI offered breast augmentation surgery for just $5,990 and used a “One Size Fits All approach” to streamline its services.
‘[This system] was allegedly applied without regard to a patient’s anatomy… and the associated requirement for different or complementary surgical approaches and techniques,” Judge Richard Weinstein said: news.com.au reported.
TCI is currently in liquidation.
The Cosmetic Institute has been ordered to pay $25 million to its former patients whose lives were ‘ruined’ by botched boob jobs
Narelle Bayon (pictured) suffered neurological damage from her $6,000 breast augmentation under TCI’s ‘One Size Fits All approach’
The massive lawsuit was led by twelve women who provided detailed evidence of TCI’s intimate procedures, which led to serious health complications.
Judge Richard Weinstein acknowledged the “lasting harm” the women faced during the proceedings.
“Without their participation, this representative process, which benefits so many women, would not have been possible,” he said.
‘In this case, the expert reports extensively refer to the plaintiffs’ breast enlargement surgery and they have had their private anatomy examined and photographed several times.
“It is reasonable to expect that the discomfort and embarrassment caused by this invasion of their privacy was increased due to the intimate nature of the claims.”
These twelve women are expected to receive $2.81 million to be divided among them.
An estimated $10 million of the settlement will pay the legal and administrative costs of the class action.
The rest of the money — about $12.19 million — will be shared among the lawsuit’s more than 1,000 signatories.
Several horror stories about TCI have emerged over the past decade at affected clinics in Sydney and the Gold Coast.
Sarah Jaremenko (pictured) revealed that a breast implant from TCI had migrated to her armpit and caused serious damage
TCI offered breast augmentation surgery for just $5,990 and used a ‘One Size Fits All approach’ to streamline its services
In 2015, former patient Sarah Jaremenko revealed that a breast implant from TCI had migrated to her armpit and caused serious damage.
“I now have torn ligaments, torn muscles, implant displacement, I need a full reconstruction and it’s just a mess,” she told 7News.
That same year, a woman went into cardiac arrest after receiving a high dose of local anesthetic from the company’s Bondi clinic.
One woman has had seizures since her procedure with TCI, while another woman had to undergo emergency surgery.
Narelle Bayon suffered neurological damage from her $6,000 boob job.
“It’s pressing on the nerves on my arm and it causes pain every day, I have tingling,” she said.
Other issues mentioned in the class action included heart problems and punctured lungs.