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Around half of the sunbeds checked in Aargau in 2022 violated the new federal radiation limits. The protection of minors is also often not complied with, which shows a check for the first time. That should be similar in other cantons.
For the first time ever, a Swiss canton, Aargau, has checked compliance with the new limit values for radiation protection. The Federal Council had reduced the permissible values for dangerous UV radiation in mid-2019. It’s about protecting against skin cancer. But now it has become apparent that the limit values are exceeded in many solariums, probably not only in Aargau. And that’s not all of the shortcomings.
The Aargau Office for Consumer Protection checked a total of 75 solariums in 2022, which is about a quarter of the solariums known in Aargau. In 37 cases, i.e. around half, the measured irradiance was above the limit value, writes the office. In all these cases, the authorities required the companies to have the irradiance adjusted by specialized technicians.
The inspected solariums belong to 24 different companies, mostly tanning studios. A small number of solariums can also be found in bathrooms, hotels, fitness studios and beauty salons. Companies obviously still have a lot of catching up to do when it comes to complying with the regulations. The office found deficiencies in 23 of the 24 companies inspected.
Switzerland-wide shortcomings in the protection of minors
The deficiencies in terms of youth protection are even greater than with the radiation limit values. According to the authorities, strong UV radiation is particularly risky for young people with regard to later skin cancer. Since 2022 at the latest, solariums must therefore ensure that no minors can lie on a sunbed. But in the controlled solariums in Aargau, implementation is lacking.
The Federal Council issued a ban on solariums for minors in 2019, with transitional periods for implementation. Since the vast majority of solariums are in unmanned studios, age verification would be mandatory for access to the studio. However, the inspection in Aargau showed that technical access control was only in place in one of the 24 companies inspected. In the vast majority of solariums, young people can lie under UV light without hindrance, despite the ban.
The problems are an issue throughout Switzerland, which is not a special case in Aargau.
This is certainly not only the case in Aargau, says Alda Breitenmoser, head of the Consumer Protection Office: “The problems are an issue throughout Switzerland.” Breitenmoser cites technical hurdles as a possible reason. The electronic access restrictions are not always easy to install and operate.
However, the tanning studios had more than two years. The fact that the industry has not yet implemented the ban is mainly due to delivery problems with the technical systems, explains Florian Gavilan, President of the Swiss Solaria Association, at the request of SRF: “Many of our members have ordered systems, but they have yet to be delivered not fully delivered.»
Even if the solarium ban for minors is currently hardly enforced anywhere in Aargau, the solariums can still remain open, says Alda Breitenmoser. A closure would be disproportionate in view of the similar situation in other cantons. The companies would have to retrofit now. At the next check, the access restriction should be installed.