How we check clinics

Every clinic on ClinicChecked is matched to its record on a public register. We show what the register says, link to the full record, and note the date we last checked it.

Where the details come from

• England: the Care Quality Commission (CQC) register. Clinics that carry out surgical procedures, including hair transplants and cosmetic surgery, must be registered with the CQC.
• Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland: Healthcare Improvement Scotland, Healthcare Inspectorate Wales and the Regulation and Quality Improvement Authority.
• Non-surgical treatments: practitioner registers accredited by the Professional Standards Authority, such as the Joint Council for Cosmetic Practitioners and Save Face.
• Treatments and contact details: the regulator’s own report first, then the clinic’s website.

How often we check

We refresh the register data every week. When a registration is cancelled or archived, the clinic comes off the main list.

What a rating tells you

A rating is the regulator’s view of one address at the time of its inspection. It covers safety, effectiveness, care, responsiveness and leadership. It does not rate the results of a procedure or any one surgeon, and an old rating may not reflect how the clinic runs today.

What we never do

• We don’t sell ratings, and paying for a featured listing doesn’t change what the register says.
• We don’t publish reviews we can’t verify.
• We don’t list a clinic that has no registration we can find for its address.

Registration and rating details contain public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0, from the Care Quality Commission. ClinicChecked is independent and is not part of the CQC or any other regulator.