Ultra Violette pulls sunscreen product as it falls well below advertised results
Sunscreen brand Ultra Violette has removed one of its brands from shelves “effective immediately” after testing revealed its sun protection dramatically below the advertised 50-plus.
Sunscreen brand Ultra Violette has pulled one of their sunscreens from shelves “effective immediately” just months after saying claims its SPF was well below 50 were not “even remotely accurate”
The sunscreen brand was one of several called out by consumer advocacy group CHOICE earlier this year, after independent testing of the brand’s Lean Screen product returned an SPF of four, well below its advertised 50-plus.
Ultra Violette criticised CHOICE — who had commissioned blind testing of multiple SPF50+ products at the time — with co-founder Ava Chandler-Matthews posting a video to the brand’s socials questioning the testing process.
The company labelled the CHOICE results as “misleading claims” and said they did “not accept these results as even remotely accurate” in a statement at the time.
“It is disappointing that Choice has chosen to release what we view as misleading information in the interest of generating headlines – and not in the wellbeing of the general public,” they said.
But in a statement today, Ultra Violette co-founders Ava Chandler-Matthews and Bec Jefferd announced testing by multiple independent laboratories of Lean Screen had returned widely varying results and they would cease sales immediately.
The co-founders, who ordered the testing in the wake of the CHOICE scandal, said the results were not “good enough”.
“This week, we recieved results from those tests that demonstrated significant and, candidly, atypical variability,” the statement said.
“Across eight different tests, Lean Screen has now returned SPF data of 4, 10, 21, 26, 33, 60, 61 and 64.
“Given this pattern of inconsistency in testing, we have decided to withdraw Lean/Velvet Screen from the market effective immediately.
“We are deeply sorry that one of our products has fallen short of the standards we pride ourselves on and that you have come to expect of us.”
The pair said Lean Screen was created by a third-party manufacturer, who they will no longer work with.
They said they have also stopped working with the overseas laboratory, Princeton Consumer Research Group, that had conducted SPF testing on Lean Screen, and reported it meeted SPF50 requirements.
CHOICE released their report in June showing 20 sunscreens didn’t meet their SPF50+ claims in blind testing at Eurofins Dermatest, an independent, accredited laboratory in Sydney.
CHOICE said Ultra Violette’s result, an SPF of 4, was so low they organised a second, smaller test at a German laboratory and this returned a similar result (SPF 5).
Ultra Violette disputed CHOICE’s report at the time, and published their own reports showing their sunscreen scored well above SPF50+ in two rounds of testing, which were performed both times by an independent, accredited laboratory in Britain — the Princeton Consumer Research Group.
The reports were from the product’s initial testing in 2021 and a second round of testing, which they ordered after they were informed by CHOICE about their product’s low results prior to the public release.
Ultra Violette has now recommended discontinuing the use of Lean Screen, as “we cannot definitively confirm that the SPF protection is as labelled”.
Anyone who has purchased Leen or Velvet Screen can apply for a refund through Ultra Violette’s website or, if purchased elsewhere, the initial retailer.
Ultra Violette said the third-party manufacturer for Lean Screen did not make any other products for them, and the “the majority” of their range was not made by a third-party.
“Every new Ultra Violette product will be SPF tested at a minimum of two different independent labs prior to launch,” they said.
“We are working with a new and wider network of testing facilities that have been BIPEA-audited and independently vetted.”
A sunscreen with an SPF50 rating blocks 98 per cent of ultraviolet radiation (UVR), while an SPF of 4 blocks 75 per cent of UVR.
CHOICE chief executive Ashley de Silva said they released their sunscreen tests earlier this year because it was in the public interests.
“Today’s announcement from Ultra Violette confirms there is a clear problem with how sunscreen is regulated and tested in Australia,” he said.
“Without CHOICE’s investigation, Ultra Violette’s Lean Screen would still be on shelves, despite the fact that it does not provide anywhere near the amount of sun protection it claims to.”
“CHOICE is calling on the TGA to urgently provide an update on its investigation. Ultra Violette’s product may not be the only product that is affected and consumers deserve to know whether they can continue to trust SPF claims in Australia.”
The Herald Sun has contacted the TGA and Princeton Consumer Research Group for comment.
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