How to Report a Nail Salon in Florida

At Chalik & Chalik Injury Lawyers, our legal team advocates for people who wrongfully contracted infections or suffered an injury after getting nail services at a salon. Recently, our team won a $150,000 settlement for a nail salon victim who developed severe rashes and other illnesses because of poor hygiene practices at a Fort Myers nail salon. Unfortunately, her case is not unique, as many people fall victim to negligent nail salon businesses yearly.

If you or a loved one witnessed improper business at a nail salon, whether you saw technicians reuse tools on patrons without cleaning or made patrons bleed because of poor technique, you have multiple ways to report the nail salon in Florida to the Division of Business & Professional Regulation (DBPR). For example, you can:

• Visit the DBPR website’s “File a Complaint” page
• Call the DBPR’s unlicensed activity hotline at 1-866-532-1440 to report the malpractice
• Email the DBPR at [email protected] with a report of your account
• Fill out a Uniform Complaint Form (DBPR-0070) and mail it to the office address on the form

Alternatively, you can hire a Florida personal injury attorney to help you report the incident and build a case against the nail salon if the incident led to your personal injuries or damages.

What Qualifies as a Reason to File a Complaint Against a Nail Salon?

All nail salons must abide by federal and state standards to operate their businesses. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) guides nail salon businesses and employees to follow to keep workers and patrons safe while performing nail services.

In Florida specifically, nail salons must follow standards set in 61G5-20.002 to avoid spreading disease and causing injury to customers. Common causes of injury and illness stem from negligence, such as:

Not Abiding by Florida’s Disinfection Laws

Disinfection standards for Florida nail salons generally include:

• Making sure to clean tools between uses when serving patrons
• Cleaning tools with soap and water before immersing them in disinfectant chemical solutions
• Using hospital-grade disinfectant solutions to clean tools
• Having other cleaning supplies, such as wet disinfection containers and ultra-violet irradiation boxes
• Cleaning pedicure basins after each use between patrons
• Cleaning parts inside pedicure basis, such as filters and jet components, daily
• Replacing tools frequently and ensuring there are adequate numbers of supplies to ensure tools are disinfected between each use

Failure to abide by these rules could make nail salons liable for diseases or infections customers contract after receiving services.

Not Keeping Proper Records of Business Practices

To ensure nail salons abide by disinfectant laws, the state requires nail salons to keep a daily record or logbook of the staff’s disinfection procedures. Health inspectors may review these records during exams. Failure to keep records of cleaning procedures could result in fines or legal action against the salon.

Having Unlicensed Workers Perform Nail Services

The DBPR must properly license all nail technicians who perform services on patrons. If you discover the nail technician who last did work on your nails was unlicensed and you contracted an infection from their handiwork, you can report the nail technician or Florida salon to intervene in their services and prevent others from suffering harm.

Our legal team will then investigate whether the salon knew the nail technician was unlicensed before hiring them or allowing them to perform nail services, then collect evidence to support your case should you decide to pursue compensation.

You May Qualify for Compensation if You Contracted an Infection or Injury From a Florida Nail Salon

If you or a loved one contracted an infection, other illness, or injury from a nail salon in Florida, you may qualify for compensation. You can work with a nail salon infection or injury lawyer from our Florida law firm to sue the nail salon for your damages, which may include:

• Medical treatment expenses
• Pain and suffering and inconvenience
• Emotional distress
• Lost income if you had to take off multiple days to treat your injuries or could not work
• Permanent disability, which can include bloodborne and autoimmune diseases like HIV or hepatitis B or C
• Impaired quality of life

This is not a complete list of damages you could pursue, as each personal injury case is unique to the victim. Our team will listen to your case and suggest damages to claim based on how your injuries or illness affect you.

Injuries or Illnesses That Could Qualify You for Compensation

You may be interested in pursuing compensation if you suffered any of the following injuries or diseases:

• Fungal infections (paronychia)
• MRSA infection
• HPV virus
• HIV, hepatitis B or C, or other bloodborne diseases
• Warts, including genital warts or herpes
• Symptoms of skin diseases, such as rash, hives, or itching
• Allergic reactions
• Septic shock

VeryWell Health describes how disease spreads throughout nail salons. However, other disease symptoms may not be recognizable. For example, our client’s symptoms included metabolic acidosis and acute renal failure, both affecting the kidneys. We fought for her financial recovery, and she won a $150,000 settlement for her medical expenses.

If you are experiencing sudden odd symptoms after getting nail services, you should promptly seek medical attention to determine their potential cause. Our team can investigate your case further and collect evidence to support your claims. We’ll assign a Florida injury attorney to represent you throughout litigation and work toward negotiating a settlement or presenting your case at trial.

Call Chalik & Chalik Injury Lawyers for a Free Case Review

If you or a loved one suffered an injury or contracted an infection after going to a nail salon in Florida, you might be able to take legal action against the business or the nail technician who caused your injuries and damages. A personal injury lawyer from Chalik & Chalik Injury Lawyers can represent you and help you take steps to build your case, whether you want to help with filing a report against the nail salon in Florida or determining if you can file a lawsuit.

Our law firm offers the first consultation for free to listen to your case and go over potential strategies. From there, we can start building your case right away.