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Bad Hair Transplants at KSL Hair Clinic

J

JS

Valued member
The sequence of events regarding my experience with KSL Hair.

On the 28th January 2015, I had a consultation with KSL hair in their Glasgow clinic, this was conducted by Mr Simon Lindsay. The consultation was very brief, it felt more like pay the money and not about getting me the best possible results. Simon assured me that we could achieve a full head of hair, ranging from the front to back, quoting your donor area is very good. I felt the whole experience was about trying to sell me the FUE procedure and he had an answer for everything. He asked what I did for a living, in my opinion, this then reflected the price of the procedure. At the time I asked for a contract, which Simon replied you`ll get that sent to you, this never happened. There was a lot of quoted words like Surgeon and Doctor, this making my mind settle, because where else do you get this kind of talk and for it to go horribly wrong. Doctor and Surgeon to me shows competent people and I should not have to worry on the skill of my procedure. Stupidly I paid £4000 as a deposit and was to await the date for the procedure. Simon explained that if I was to cancel the procedure then I would lose my deposit. This was only after I had paid the deposit, which I found really alarming.

On the way home I received an email confirmation regarding the procedure and payments made. Quoting the following: The Procedure is 100% guaranteed and if we don`t achieve 90% regrowth of the implanted grafts we will do the FUE procedure again to make up this percentage. The agreed price for this procedure is £9,000. We have already received a £4,000 deposit, and the remaining £5,000 will be paid in 36 installments of £138.88.


On the 13th March 2015, my surgery was cancelled and reorganised several times over the next while. I received excuse after excuse from the surgeon has doubled booked himself and to the more sinister, the surgeon has mental health issues and has been detained under the mental health act. This is where the excuse started from KSL regarding lost numbers, missing post, missing and lost emails etc.


Email from Andrew Dingwall:

Hi JerryApologies for the delay in contacting you, I've been off the past two days and Gillian hasn't been able to get a hold of me.I've tried calling you but the number we have on the system is tel:077####### which is one digit short, I've tried adding numbers here and there but never found you haha. I believe you are looking to book a train for Thursday, could I ask that you hold off until the morning when I get back into the office, as I've had word that the surgeon is trying to change the schedule due to double booking himself elsewhere. This is a little embarrassing on our part, as although we have our hands tied when it comes to the surgeon, this doesn't make us look good.

On the 28th March 2015, I received an email from Gillian@ksl. Final confirmation of my surgery, including date and amended price receipt following all the cancelations previously

Hi Jerry, Just (another) confirmation email of payments received and surgery details. Sunday 5th April at 8 am you will arrive at 79 West Regent Street, Glasgow, G2 2AW. Please make sure you have eaten breakfast before arrival. No alcohol or exercise a few days prior to your procedure either. The first stage is the extraction process which I would see lasting 2 to 3 hrs. The Second Stage is the implantation process; this can take anything up 4hrs. The Procedure is 100% guaranteed and if we don`t achieve 90% regrowth of the implanted grafts we will do the FUE procedure again to make up this percentage. The agreed price for this procedure is now £8,000. We have already received a £4,000 deposit, and the remaining reduced £4,000 will be paid in 36 instalments of £111.11. As mentioned on the phone, let us know any costs incurred to yourself for the inconvenience of a reschedule and we shall cover them happily. Unfortunately, the last paragraph was confirmed as incorrect, as Simon refused to pay for my train and millage to Inverness.


On 6th April 2015, the day of the procedure I received my contract, I was horrified to find it the complete opposite of what was explained in the consultation. I was under a lot of pressure to just go through with the procedure as I was unable to take the loss of £4000. I also thought what could go wrong, this, after all, is a clinic in the UK and I will have rights if something were to go wrong.

The surgeon (Dr Francisco Mauricio Berrios Merino) that conducting the procedure came in to see me, he explains that I could not have hair implanted front to back. He had concerns that the newly implanted hair would damage the existing hair. He explained it was impossible and he would not be carrying out the procedure I had originally gone in for. This I thought was crazy, how on earth could I go in for a consultation, for it to be so different on the day. Dr Merino administers the local anesthetic. I asked the doctor several questions, each one I found his answer poor. I had a strong nervous feeling after this, I was not sure the doctor and if he was experienced enough. I was so annoyed that Andrew Dingwall came through to reassure me and stop me from walking out. Andrew assured me that the aftercare will work and they stand by their guarantees. (The aftercare consisted of minoxidil and laser treatment, none of which I was consulted on or in fact what I wanted. Going by the NHS neither of them is guaranteed, despite what Andrew insisted. In my eyes, I went in to get a hair transplant, nothing else as I was paying for hair that would last. Since 2015 I have done a lot of research and I have found Dr Francisco to be none GMC registered and he was also not registered with ISHRS.)


Once Andrew managed to yet again convince me this was the best option, he then handed me some medication. The medication was Valium and very strong as it was, but Andrew gave me more than he should of that day. This I also found to be strange, someone not medically trained handing out medication, and going over the recommended dosage. The procedure itself was so rushed, Andrew on several occasions came through to hurry the procedure along as there was someone waiting, again not giving me great expectations. Halfway through the procedure implanting stage, they swapped who was going to be implanting my hair. The person now to be implanting was a girl I had met earlier working behind a desk and who cut my hair. Lauren Black explained to me that she was a hairdresser and had no qualification with her new line of work, it was train as you go and that was how she had been learning. From this one sitting, I was really starting to get worried about my experience with KSL. Once the procedure was complete I noticed the equipment used was being bathed in a red to brown coloured solution, but the other equipment used earlier was now gone. I followed their aftercare to the letter, but it was pretty obvious from the 6th month mark, my FUE procedure was a flop. I never got a copy of the contract I signed on the day of the procedure, even after expressing the importance of this to Andrew. Once the procedure concluded and I was in the waiting area Simon came to me and explained he was not a conman and he was not going to con me, he promised I would get the results I paid for.


On the day I was attending one of my laser appointments Andrew Dingwall asked me into his office. He went on to explain that KSL were offering early settlement deals to customers. The deal was still under the original contract, but was just a great way to save some money. His email is a follows:


Hi JerryPlease find this email as confirmation that you have taken advantage of our early settlement offer for existing clients, in which we thank you for your payment of £1,500.00.
As discussed, this offer was not put in place to cut ties with yourself, but simply to thank you for your business until now. Everything previously agreed at initial consultation and payment with regards to aftercare and results will remain the same. You will continue with the aftercare program, and we will also continue to monitor your hair through periodic reviews, we also 100% stand by our guarantee of your results.
This at the time seemed a good deal and I took up Andrew on his offer. From my time dealing with KSL I have gained a lot of experience in the way they conduct business. I can see now that there was more than one motive for Andrew Dingwall to suggest this. One being my results then were obviously going to be poor and I would be seeking advice on that. Also, I was paying up a direct debit into a KSL bank account, not done through a finance company, meaning I could have cancelled it relatively easily.

I had various telephone complaints to Andrew and Francis as it seemed Simon would continually ignore any complaint directly. There is not even any acknowledgment from KSL, bringing some clarity that my complaint will be dealt with effectively. By ignoring or dismissing my complaints, they are effectively telling me that they don`t value my opinion. I found this strange and contradicting to the email receipts I received from KSL, giving guaranteed results on the procedure.


Finally, I had my complaints heard and KSL offered to do the FUE procedure again free of charge. I received an email confirmation regarding the second procedure:
Please find this email as confirmation of your booked FUE procedure on the 18th of August 2016. On the day you will arrive at 79 West Regent Street, Glasgow, G2 2AW (next door to consultation office) at 7 am, please ensure you have breakfast on the day, as you will be given medication when you arrive, it is important to have something in your stomach. Please do not consume any coffee or spicy foods the day prior to the procedure, or on the morning of the procedure, and no alcohol for 3 days before, and 6 days after, all of which will be explained in your aftercare. A little about how the format of the day when you arrive in the morning we shall go through some standard consent forms and explain to you the medication you must take, just some anti-inflammatories and antibiotics. You will then consult with the doctor and a KSL representative about the areas of the scalp we will be working with, highlighting with a marker the new agreed hairline etc, so you can see exactly what will be done throughout the day. Once that is done, you are happy, and the medication is taken, can we then proceed. The first part of the procedure is the extraction phase, this is where we take all the hairs from the donor area that we will require to give the coverage you need, this can take up to 3 hours. The second phase is a little more exciting, the implantation. Every hair extracted in the first phase will then be implanted into the recipient area, again this can take around 3 hours, but times may vary of course. You will return to the clinic 48 hours post procedure for your first head wash, where we will carry out the first wash to show you exactly how to care for your new hairs in the first 3 weeks.
As mentioned, we will carry out periodic checks and document with photos along the way, every 6 months, to ensure progression is being made and you are happy with the way things are going. I have attached a pre-medical questionnaire to this email, it is a lengthy document, but only a couple of pages need to be filled out, the rest contains further information for yourself.
Any other questions please do not hesitate to contact me or Andrew in the office or via email.We look forward to seeing you on the day Jerry. I understand you will already know all this format but as requested this is to give you confirmation of your date.Kind RegardsIain Russell.


On the 18th August 2016, day of the procedure I was again greeted with a contract, (this one I kept) and the same feeling of rushing through the procedure. I met the doctor conducting the procedure Dr Juan Ruiz Alconero (again not GMC registered) and he administers the local anesthetic. Dr Alconero recommended I take Finasteride as this was the only wat to achieve my results with KSL. (On the way into the operation room I noticed tools layout on a movable bench. The same tools I noticed to be submersed in a red and brown solution once the doctor had completed his work on me). The procedure was quick and I felt again it was really rushed. Andrew Dingwall came in and asking for the procedure to speed up several times. There was a couple of times I felt the procedure wasn`t right and I expressed my concerns to Dr Alconero, who just gave me more anesthetic. I feel he was in such a rush he could not have done the procedure with the skill and care it needed, proving so with a medical condition I have now suffered as a result. The implant stage was done again by Lauren Black, she complained at the time that she was doing very long hours. She added that her eyes were sore and she was finding it hard to concentrate at times. This was obviously worrying, again I was in KSL feeling that this FUE was a flop before I was even done the surgery. At the end of the procedure, I had a feeling that the amount of hair removed, did not match the number of hair implanted. They told me they extracted as much hair as they possibly could, but I have very little hair in the implanted area to this day. I have pictures of the procedure and you can see how far apart the implanted hair is to each other. My feeling is they have done something because the two things do not match. Either they have not implanted the amount they took out, they did not extract the maximum amount, or the skill implanting the hair was not done with the care needed to have a successful transplant. I booked an appointment with my doctor to discuss Finasteride. What I found out from our discussion was horrible and I felt that KSL had conned me. I was seeking an FUE procedure that gave me a full head of hair, this is what I discussed with Simon and in return, I booked the procedure. I did not wish to get hair that may last for a year or two, take medication that may or may not work and I was very clear it was only hair I wanted. The second procedure left me financial out of pocket, I had to turn down a 14 day trip with my work at £350 P/D, a hotel in Glasgow for 3 nights, train to Glasgow, my travel to Inverness and home again. All of the above I asked several times to get reimbursed, this was ignored more times than I could take. Finally, I had a telephone call from Simon, he explained that he would not be reimbursing these costs as it was my responsibility to get to Glasgow etc.
After about 3 months it was very clear that my FUE procedure was another flop, the implanted hair was nowhere near enough and my hair today looks ridiculous. I constantly wear a hat to cover up the horrible mess and feel embarrassed to have my head out on show.


In August 2017 a year after my second failed FUE procedure with KSL Hair, I took to getting advice with legal action against the company. This was something I thought to be straight forward but has been proven to be a little difficult. I researched online who the regulating body was in Scotland and found it to be Healthcare improvement Scotland. On this new information I decided to give them a call, I reported KSL to them to receive confirmation that they would conduct an investigation. Having time I googled KSL reviews and forums, within a couple of minutes I had found a lot of bad reviews. Being concerned I uploaded contact details online, giving instruction on how to contact Healthcare Improvement Scotland with a complaint etc.


During this time having sent countless complaints to KSL, they eventually answered and offered to do a 3rd FUE procedure.
On the 30th of September 2017, I had a meeting to discuss my options with KSL, this meeting was with myself, my partner, Andrew Dingwall and Iain Russell. At the time of the meeting to discuss this, I thought it might have been an option to go through another FUE with them, as a refund was not an option. Andrew Dingwall proving to be quite the salesman again managed to convince me it was the best thing to do. I asked Andrew Dingwall several times to give me a detailed email explaining the 3rd procedure and what was involved.


Good afternoon Jerry It was a pleasure seeing you and your partner today. As discussed, in conjunction with our guarantee, KSL plan to carry out a further procedure to increase density across the scalp from front to back.
We plan to extract the maximum number of grafts possible to create this density to give the desired results, in excess of 2500 grafts will be our plan. We will bring up Dr Matee Ullah who is our director of surgery for KSL hair, who will also bring his team to give you the utmost care and attention on the day. This will be a large sized procedure and I recommend 10-14 days recovery for this.
The above email was pretty vague so I asked Andrew Dingwall several times to give me more detail. He ignored my emails and telephone calls, only to reply when I copied Healthcare Improvement Scotland into yet another complaint, (Andrew Dingwall since 2015 has continually fed me information I take to be bogus, this is not the day and age where emails go missing along with all other means of contact with KSL.) he replied two weeks after with:


Hi Jerry Thanks for taking my call, it is, and always has been a pleasure speaking to you on the phone, I just hope work gets warmer :)
As mentioned, having now been copied into today`s email, I can see the quoted email to myself which I hadn`t previously received, and I am more than happy to answer the questions you have asked, as this merely reiterates the discussion we had in the office with Iain and your partner in presence, you were more than happy with what was discussed then, so please find below the answers in writing, with the goal to move forward together. KSL hair have never in the past, and will not in the future shut the door on yourself or any other client for that matter and continue to stand by our promise to you. We would love to carry out the further procedure as soon as possible, within the week if we could, but understand the timescales for this are now dictated by yourself and work schedules etc, therefore if it were to run into the new year, you will still be treated the same, and this email is your guarantee of this statement. As per discussions on the 30th September in the office, and requested in writing, please find bullet pointed answers to your concerns;


1. You will be looked after solely by Dr Matee Ullah and dedicated members of his surgical team, which will not leave you from start to finish. Contrary to the other statement in your first point, ALL hairs extracted from the donor site are implanted in the recipient site.
2. Dr Matee Ullah has a duty of care to treat your donor site with care and attention, and I believe we can achieve 2500 grafts from the site, and aim for more if deemed suitable to do so.
3. All expenses from travel to accommodation will be covered by KSL hair, whether this is public transport, or if you feel more comfortable travelling by car, fuel costs.Again Jerry, apologies on my part for the delayed response, but I simply haven`t received an email from yourself.
Looking forward to moving on to the next step with you Jerry.

By this time I was getting exhausted with the KSL experience and decided against the 3rd FUE procedure. They were not giving me any confidence that the company had changed and that the customer came first. My feeling from the first alarm bell was that KSL did not have my interests first and they were more about the money. In October 2017, I received an email from a concerned KSL client. He explained that on companies house, KSL ha put themself into liquidation. Take that what you will but to me that is a typical cowardly way-out.


In 2018, Simon got in contact with me and was promising to resolve this matter with a full refund and pay any costs incurred by KSL. We had various emails back and forth, most of which were done outside of business hours. I feel he was using me at my financial expense, adding a removing this promised refund like it was some sort of game. This has caused a lot of emotional stress to myself and my family, it is horrible to think that a director of a company (that has done wrong and admitted this) could act in this unprofessional way. Some of the emails were as follows:
On the 29th January 2018 at 19:53, Simon Lindsay emailed:


Hi Jerry I hope you are well today? I don`t know about you but I`m really getting fed up with all of this now. It`s not only affecting my companies performance but it`s now affecting me personally. KSL is a family company and this has gone past the business taking flack but it`s now affecting my staff's personal lives. I also have a duty of care to them as much as I have to you as my client. So I would ask you to please consider the following. I`ll offer you a full refund of your procedure cost, plus any additional costs you`ve incurred if you agree to certain terms which I can have sent to you first thing tomorrow. There are no tricks behind this, it`s a genuine offer to stop the sparring contest so we can all move on with our lives. I`ll have your refund transferred to you within 24hrs when the signed agreement is returned to myself.
Please be aware that this same offer will be made to other individuals who I`m aware of had a grievance with KSL Hair Ltd.
My Co-Director Mr Lloyd Hume is CCD as a witness on my behalf. I hope you make the right decision and then we can all move on with our lives again I look forward to your response. On 02 Feb 2018 at 14.29, Simon Lindsay emailed: Hi Jerry, My apologies on the delay today. It`s been very busy. Transfer sorted and will land in your account within the next 24hrs (business hrs) On the 04 Feb 2018 at 08:37, Simon Lindsay emailed: Our deal is hanging on by a thread here but I`ll need to speak with both HIS and my lawyer tomorrow to see how this progresses. You were told and which was acceptable that your payment was processed and would be in your account by Monday. So how am I a liar etc as it`s still only Sunday?
Followed by on 04 Feb 2018 at 05:03, Simon Lindsay emailed: Simple way to resolve this Is Prove it`s not you Jerry. If you not willing to then it`s a clear admission of guilt. I`ll leave it up to you.

To date I am all communication has stopped, none of my emails have been acknowledged, my telephone calls do not get returned and the messages I have left have not been returned. The useless solicitors I instructed to represent me in this case, I no longer use. B&M in Edinburgh left me with a £2400 invoice to settle, they were a total waste of time. The two procedures from KSL were a traumatic and horrible experience. They have damaged my body beyond repair and decimated my donor area. KSL have now made it almost, if not impossible for me to ever achieve the results I originally asked for and paid for in the consultation. Not only have KSL affected my self-esteem but I have some serious nerve damage - occipital neuralgia. This was confirmed by a doctor and I am now taking medication to combat the pain I am suffering. I have to go through this process again, if I ever want to have a life without wearing a hat and to correct the terrible work KSL conducted. Simon or any of the other KSL staff have shown not a single bit of remorse. This has left me financially broken, emotionally broken and with life changing detriment. I can honestly say KSL was the worst mistake I have ever made and I hope to all of us affected, we finally get our justice.

Jerry Smith.
 
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Bigmac

Bigmac

Administrator
Staff member
Hi Jerry.
Welcome to the forum and thanks for sharing your story. It sounds like you`ve been through hell with this company, some people just don`t have a conscience.
Try not to let it take over your life, together we will try to help you out.

Take care.
Bm
 
bullitnut

bullitnut

4 awesome repairs with SMG
Welcome to the forum, I hope you get some resolution dude as this company is ruining lives.
 
T

Tilleylamp

member
Oh god, how terrible is this clinic. You've had a terrible time by the sound of things. They should be held accountable for what they've done to you and the others. It makes me feel sick to think doctors are doing this without due care and so, for what, "greed"
You're very brave to tell your story, I too hope you can find some resolution to fix your situation.
Wishing you the very best of luck.
 
J

JS

Valued member
Thank you for the support guys. Take a look at my pictures. KSL Hair Clinic told me I would achieve full coverage. If you look at my donor, the salesman advised I could have another 2500 FUE grafts extracted for a 3rd procedure to repair the previous two. He never showed my pictures to a doctor, just gave me this medical opinion.


Before any surgery.

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After 2 KSL hair transplants


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Bongo

Bongo

Member
Damn, these cowboys are ruining lives, that's some of the worst work I've ever seen. Hope you get things sorted. Can't believe they ever suggested FUE in the first place. Good luck
 
D

Dazzster26

Valued member
Hey man I feel for you , these so called surgeon cowboys should be struck of the register all you can do now is just see if their is anything that can be done to help you , Joe Tillman the HAIR TRANSPLANT MENTOR is one person who could give advice plus BigMac and Bullitnut as they have some experience , I wish you all the best mate I really do

Daz
 
A

anjali jha

member
Really feel bad about u, these guys are making fool to peoples just for the sake of money. choosing a right and reputed hair transplantation clinic is really a tough job because everywhere these types of fraud people are existed.

 
J

JS

Valued member
Hi BM,
Thank you for you comment, we are trying although it is proving very difficult.
 
J

JS

Valued member
Tilleylamp,
Thank you for your comment.
Yes it is ridiculous that this happened in the first place and it just got worse and worse.
They have not a clue regarding medical knowledge and experience. As for Dr Matee... what a joke of a man. I've head so many bad thing's about him now.
 
J

JS

Valued member
Thank you all for the messages, I will keep you all up to date with each milestone.
 
J

JS

Valued member
So Friday 6th April 2018 I went in to get my hair assessed, this is what happened and all a result of KSL's substandard work:



I had an appointment with one of, if not the best clinic here in the UK. The consultation was to assess my head and see if anything could be done to fix the mess KSL left me in.

The consultation was good and bad but mainly bad, the news I received explaining just how bad the condition my head is, has broken me. So much so I'm not sure if I can ever get over this. My head is wrecked and I'll have to go under a number of surgeries just to rectify the mess KSL made. I'm a strong person and never show my emotions in this way, but being in this terrible situation is now overwhelming.

My experience with KSL was in fact a pointless exercise. It was confirmed that KSL has damaged my head, to the extent I will never recover from. KSL has removed too much hair from my donor area, confusing the experts in where the removed hair has gone as it doesn`t match up. The examinations showed hardly any hair growing, what little hair has managed to grow, will have to be removed and re-planted properly.

Because of this I now have to undergo extensive surgery a number of times. Most of this surgery will be to rectify the disgraceful work the KSL doctors have conducted. The work that was approved by Simon Lindsay, Andrew Dingwall and the rest of The KSL Brand.

To achieve a normal head of hair for me is now impossible but, with some excellent work, I will be able to have some kind of results. Hopefully, I will have some kind of success if I chose to go down this long road with this new clinic.

As with any surgery, there are risks, complications and choices. These choices are easy to make, provided you have all the correct information, giving you the best chance to make an informed decision. This is something I did not experience with using The KSL Brand, their information is misleading and the offers you receive can cloud your judgment.

Now I'm faced with a choice, a choice I would never have had to of faced, if I originally went to the clinic I received my report from. Taking medication for the rest of my life is something I never wanted, and I'm not sure if we can cope with in all honesty. There are implications as with any medication but these implications will have an effect on us and our future plans. Not only that, but this will be a serious financial burden on us too.

The qualified surgeon that conducted the report, confirmed that I will never get the results I originally asked KSL for. This was a consultation I had with Simon Lindsay and Andrew Dingwall. The surgeon confined that this was the result of the work carried out by KSL.

Proving the hard fact that using KSL was no benefit to me what so ever. Making this the worst kind of reminder and the consequences using KSL have made to my life. The company has no remorse for the pain and suffering they have caused me. The "new management" has never been in touch to express their condolences. Nor have they offered to help with the serious health issues I'm now faced as a result of The KSL Brand. Lloyd knows about my situation as he was copied into several emails from Simon, this was somehow after the time period. Simon Lindsay resigned as a director from The KSL Clinic in September 2017.


This is not online abuse from a select few individuals, a fake review that KSL claim to be getting, nor is this a hate campaign against some of the company members, this is a warning to those thinking of using this company. The story of how using KSL has changed my life for ever.
 
J

JS

Valued member
From the clinic:


An assessment of Mr Jerry Smith on 6th April 2018 - NW 5/6 with sparse hairs throughout.

Summary and recommendation of next steps towards repair:

The frontal hairline has majority of mis-angled and multi hairs giving a very unnatural hairline. Behind the unnatural wall of hairs at the hairline, there is very low density of some natural and transplanted hairs covering the frontal area to the crown. The universal safe donor and the vulnerable areas at the back and sides are over harvested as you can see through to the scalp. Would estimate there is approximately 40% of normal hair density remaining in the back and sides.

Next steps depend upon adding daily regimen of Regaine Foam and Propecia.
If able to stay on hair loss prevention meds: punch out majority of the grafts at the hairline and re-plant them to areas behind the hairline. Also proceed with a FUE procedure to extract as many scalp hairs to place in the hairline to give a mature hairline and extract beard hairs to help give density to the mid-scalp area. The only areas to be addressed would be the frontal half as there will not be enough donor hairs to address the crown. The coverage will have less than average density due to the low amount of available donor hairs, however, it will improve the density currently in place.

May want to consider PRP (Platelet Rich Plasma) treatment - 2 treatments in the 1st year 6 months apart then touch ups on a yearly basis.

If unable to try or stay on hair loss prevention meds: punch out majority of the grafts and discard them to give a more natural bald look. Due to the degree of hair loss combined with over harvesting of donor area, without meds there wouldn`t be enough donor hairs to achieve a natural look on top....
 
J

JS

Valued member
No matter how many times I read this, it still hurts and I'm not sure if I ever can feel closure.

Simon Lindsay

Lloyd Hume

Andrew Dingwall

Lauren Black

Dr Francisco Mauricio Berrios Merino

Dr Jan Ruiz Alconero

The KSL crew.. I'm ;looking forward to court!
 
M

mikey1786

Valued member
My ordeal started back in 2014. I was 27 and knew very little about the hair transplant industry. I'm a big football fan and had seen the advertising campaigns involving several Scottish premiership players and decided to book a consultation with KSL. I spoke with Simon Lindsay over the phone and arranged to come down for a free consultation. During my consultation I was promised 100% full reconstruction of my hair with Guaranteed results. I was given the sales pitch which I understand is not uncommon for this kind of business.

I was quoted £8000 for my Transplant procedure with the agreement I would pay £3000 upfront and the rest on an arranged finance agreement. At this time I was 27 years old and worked as firefighter. Now although job satisfaction is high unfortunately you cant take that to the bank therefore I have never been in a position where I have had disposable income for something like this. However in this instance I was willing to use any savings I had and borrow from my parents in order to have the dream of getting my hair back again as was described by Mr Lindsay.

I paid my £3000 on the Friday and set about booking a date for my Transplant operation. I was given a date a couple weeks away and arranged for time off and other provisions for my recovery. This is where things started to downhill...

The night before my operation I was sitting with my bag packed, clothes laid out and a real feeling of excitement. Then I received a phone call from Mr Lindsay. He explained that upon reviewing my pre op pictures the surgeon who would be doing my operation had informed him that it would not be possible to obtain a full coverage in one operation. Mr Lindsay said that in order to do this in one operation I would be required to attend the clinic on a weekly basis for approx. 6 months and use their laser therapy machine which would increase density of my existing hair and enable me to have one successful operation rather than two.

I didn't know any better and therefore agreed to this. I travelled from Edinburgh to Glasgow on a weekly basis for a year before I was told that I was now ready for my transplant.

I once again booked in a date and time and arranged for time off work in order to allow recovery. I attended the clinic in March 2015 to receive my first transplant from KSL. The surgeon was Dr fransico m berrios merino. He and his team were Spanish and didn't speak any English. I have since learned that he was not licensed to perform surgery in the uk. I endured a gruelling 8 hour operation and left with the understanding that this was me now on the road to having my hair back.

I immediately noticed when I got home and looked in the mirror that there were still large areas untouched and there seemed to be random sporadic bits of my scalp which had a couple of hairs transplanted into them. I questioned this at my post op review a couple days later and was told this was normal and the surgeon was very satisfied with how the operation went. I struggled to see how this would be the case as I was quite far on in my hair loss rather than just the crown or temples but as far as I was aware I was talking to the experts.

As you can probably gather my results were embarrassingly bad. I would not be over exaggerating if I was to say you would never have known that I had ever had any form of hair transplant after this surgery.

I continued to attend the clinic and they accepted that the quality of transplant I had received was nowhere near acceptable. I was told this would be rectified by transplant number 2 which would be done by a different surgeon as they were no longer using the surgeon that done my previous transplant.

On 3rd February 2016 I went in for my second transplant this time with a surgeon called Vikas Kunnure. He immediately asked me would I prefer coverage in the front or the back of the head as it was clearly not possible to do both. I started to panic as this was not what I was expecting or had been told. I asked to speak with Andrew Dingwall and he explained that Vikas had made a mistake and that I would get a satisfactory result from this operation. Reassured I went ahead with the transplant. At this point I was surprised to see Lauren who worked at reception in the clinic and had informed me before that she was a hair stylist in scrubs forming part of the surgical team. She would be the one implanting the follicles back into my scalp.

Once again the results were nothing short of disgraceful. I have also been left with horrendous scarring to the back of my head, permanent nerve damage and a loss of self confidence. I have since been for a independent review at another Clinic in Glasgow who confirmed that the quality of work that I received was "very, very poor". They explained that the grafts had not even been separated and the scarring was due to the sixe of the punch used. They explained that this was totally unnecessary!

Visiting KSL was one of the worst decisions I have ever made.

What they have done to myself and others is nothing short of disgraceful.

I am currently in the process of taking KSL and several individuals involved with the company to court where hopefully they will be held accountable for their actions.

Regards

Mikey


 
gregor100

gregor100

FUE Patient - 2000 Grafts
Jesus, this scares me so much reading these threads and i'm sorry it happened to you.

I had actually BOOKED and paid a deposit for a KSL transplant but they had a 'double booking' and changed the surgery date. This really annoyed me as i'd arranged time off work so i demanded my deposit back as it inconvenienced me massively.

They reluctantly returned it and I had a transplant with Vinci over 2 years later. I am so thankful I never went ahead with KSL as they are quite clearly cowboys.

They must have access to some type of directory of 'hair transplant surgeons' who they just fly in to do procedures because it's my understanding they don't have their own surgeon, they would never tell me who the surgeon was at the time.

They've done a few celebrities quite successfully, I genuinely believe they must pay for the most expensive suregon they can find for their celebrities so they can use the results on their advert campaigns, and then use cheap options for your average person.

Another thing, when I initially went with them they hadn't been around too long and I think they were keen to get people through the door, after quoiting me i think it was £6000 I said i'd go and think about it, just a few days later they called me offering me a £2000 discount if I booked there and then! That shoulda been alarm bells straight away.

It can surely only be a matter of time until this clinic is shut down.
 
J

JS

Valued member
Hi gregor100,
Thank you for the comment and was good to read your story. You have a very lucky escape, they are utter cowboys and need to be stopped. No matter who runs the show now or what bullshi* they try and feed you, the place is a dump. They will continue to use their sub standard self proclaimed "best in the business" Dr Matee, with their unclean and dangerous conditions for there patients.
Warning to all, DO NOT LISTEN TO THESE COWBOYS THEY WILL TRY AND SELL YOU ANYTHING!
 
B

brockvile

Valued member
MY KSL Experience:
In August of 2016, I first met with Simon Lindsay. I booked an appointment with him having learned of the finance option that KSL offered - giving my employment, and therefore earning, status at the time, it seemed like an extremely good deal. Simon looked at my head and said that I was thinning from hairline to crown - and that one operation would leave me with a full head of hair, indefinitely. He said, following the 20 second analysis of my head that the cost for the service would be £6.5K - I was also told that this was a discounted rate because my father had previously gone through the same procedure. When I asked how many grafts I would receive, his response was as many as we can get.

At the end of October i went in for my procedure. I arrived at KSL and was taken to the part of the building where they conduct the operations. It was surprisingly dirty. And a couple of things, beyond the cleanliness, made me seriously doubt going through with procedure: I was asked to sign paperwork which contradicted what was originally mentioned to me by Simon in the first consultation; Dr Matee said that my hair wasn`t thinning at the crown and that he would be simply fixing my hairline - as that was the only area where I was experiencing loss. He would then go on to explain that the average person needs 3 X hair transplants in a lifetime. I said that Simon had quoted 6.5K for an operation that would see me have hair indefinitely - to which Dr Magee said that the fee covers ONLY what they can do at the time - and that it doesn`t correlate to what was discussed in the consultation; finally, the contract that they provided outlined that a hair transplant would only be considered a success, with 65% growth in the areas of transplantation and that, in certain types of lightning, it will be obvious that I`ve had the op. I should have stopped there - I was acutely aware of other, far cheaper, surgeries in London; but my insecurities got the better of me and i decided to proceed with the operation.

I had the operation. Following the application of the anaesthetic, the extraction/follicle implementation was conducted by 2 X nurses. 1 X of these nurses had flown up from the SE - she worked with (and I believe is related to the manager) of the Kent branch - she mentioned that she made the trip up to Glasgow on a regular basis to perform operations. The process was wrapped up within 4 hours - not the 8 hours quoted by Lindsay - again, this was another warning sign.

The post care guide I received included bargain basement paracetamol; and Johnson`s baby shampoo. It seemed totally unprofessional and, at this point - I was beginning to get severely worried about what I had signed up to. The post care instruction manual differed from the post care advice offered to my father who had the op 3 months previously; it also differed from the advice that my brother would go on to be offered in early 2017, following his op. I was also told that, as part of my payment, I would receive laser therapy for a series of months, to help the growth. As I live and work in London - they recommended that I go for this post care treatment in their Kent branch. This, in the end, never happened - nor have I been for the 3 month, 6 month and 12 month check ups that were advised - I was largely cut off from KSL, from the day of the procedure.

18 months later - while I`m fortunate not to have any permanent damage - e.g. the nerve damage/scarring referred to on various forums/social media platforms - I feel i have been totally ripped off. It was a scam from start to finish. I have asked them to declare exactly how many grafts I`ve had and how they came up with the quoted £6.5K - this has been constantly ignored. They are con artists of the highest order - preying on the insecurities of, largely i would imagine, young men. The journey from the first consultation to now has been a nightmare - dogged with contradictions and fake promises. Glasgow office might have closed - but the same company certainly still operates in other cities in the UK, contrary to what they have been saying on social media in recent week/months

_______________________________________________________

My agreement with KSL was a finance option (with guarantor). I complained to Shawbrook and they duly suspended my payments. However, having looked into the account, they have reactivated the payments - on the grounds of the loan agreement being between my guarantor and Shawbrook - effectively saying that there isn't a relationship between my guarantor and KSL, just Shawbrook - therefore allowing them to circumnavigate any culpability on their part.
So frustrating - my fight continues. The financial ombudsman tells me that in the eyes of the law, a loan company is just as culpable the fraudulent company.
 
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M

mikey1786

Valued member
Have Faith Brockville...I know it`s difficult just now but we are making progress in the long battle against KSL. Shawbrook will be held accountable and this is them simply trying to force your hand. Seek legal advice and leave it in the hands of a good lawyer.
 
D

Dazzster26

Valued member
Hi Friend
So sorry to here what has happened I hope you get a good lawyer and all works out for you , stay strong mate

Daz
 
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