Face the Future supports UK MP’s skin safety campaign and scraps sunscreen VAT

18 Mar 2024 --- Face the Future removes VAT for sunscreen products to promote sun safety and make “sunscreen more accessible to everyone.”

The online beauty retailer will remove the VAT in support of UK MP Amy Callaghan’s VAT Burn campaign and as a part of its 366 days of SPF campaign. 

Face the Future’s campaign aims to raise awareness of sun damage, educate people on how sun protection works, and get people wearing SPF “every single day in 2024 and beyond.” The VAT will be removed for core SPF products from March 14 until May 31 on its site.

“We believe that SPF is a daily essential and strongly recommend that you include it in your routine to prevent skin cancer and other skin health issues. That’s why, as part of our 366 Days of SPF campaign, we are giving you the opportunity to stock up on your SPF essentials without the cost of VAT to make it more affordable for everyone,” writes the company on its website.

Access to sunscreen
In an interview with Face the Future, Callaghan says the campaign was made to raise awareness for people to wear sunscreen in the first place and allow more people to wear sunscreen to protect themselves.

MP Callaghan promotes making sunscreen more affordable and accessible. By enacting a “VAT Burn,” Callaghan believes more people will wear SPF, which will “ultimately save lives.” The MP is a melanoma survivor of approximately ten years, motivating her to educate the public and legislative bodies on the importance of sunscreen. “Far too many people still die from melanoma and other skin cancers,” she says.

Callaghan believes the UK needs to treat sunscreen as an essential healthcare item and points to more people dying from melanoma in the UK than in Australia. She attributes this to Australians treating sunscreen “with the degree of respect that it deserves.”

“We need to remove the VAT from sunscreen, treating it as the essential healthcare item it is and not as a luxury good,” asserts Callaghan.

Julia Barcoe-Thompson, director and co-owner of Face the Future, adds: “We believe that everyone in the UK has the right to sun safety and skin health… We hope this additional 20% saving will encourage UK consumers to begin or continue their SPF journey.”

Tan over health
The 366 Days of SPF campaign began following a YouGov survey of approximately 2,000 participants, highlighting that the UK population does not follow SPF guidelines.

It found that the desire for tan skin outweighed the worry of skin cancer. Two percent, equalling 200,000 of the UK, use a sunbed daily, and 55% only wear SPF when it is sunny. Additionally, 40% only buy sunscreen when they go on vacation.

Thirty-one percent of the population actively seeks a tan, with 53% doing so because they believe it looks more attractive, while  72% are concerned with the risks.Face the Future reports on how many people in the UK apply sunscreen as a part of its 366 Days of SPF.

The data suggests the beauty standard of being tan overpowers health for people in the UK.

“Despite awareness increasing over the years, statistics show that there are still millions of people in the UK who do not take wearing SPF every day as seriously as they should. Whether it’s premature aging, pigmentation or, in more serious cases, cancer, there are several skin health issues that can be prevented by protecting your skin with SPF,” says Kimberley, clinic and customer experience manager at Face the Future. 

Continued fight
Callaghan has been campaigning against the VAT on sunscreen products since 2022. She began by submitting a written question to the UK government to ask ministers to consider removing the VAT from SPF. The minister refused this request.

“I think it’s really important that we tackle this from a political and parliamentary angle, but also from a more holistic and well-being angle,” she says. 

By Sabine Waldeck