The new law banning people under the age of 18 from using sunbeds appears to be working, however some tanning salons are still offering illegal price promotions, the Irish Cancer Society (ICS) has said.

It carried out an undercover survey of tanning salons in Dublin during March. As part of this, a fair-skinned 17-year-old girl went into five tanning salons seeking advice about how to build up a tan for a wedding in June.

The survey involved well-known chains and all five tanning salons told the girl that she could not use a sunbed because of the under-18 ban.

One salon owner advised her that she should not use sunbeds at all because of her fair skin, while the other four told the girl that in order to build up a tan, she would need to use a sunbed for four to five minutes, three times a week. One salon owner encouraged the use of a tan accelerator.

The law banning people under the age of 18 from using sunbeds was introduced in July 2014. Research has clearly shown that sunbeds increases the risk of skin cancer and the more a person uses a sunbed, the higher their risk of developing the disease.

Skin cancer is currently the most common type of cancer in Ireland, with over 10,000 people being newly diagnosed every year. Around 850 of these will develop melanoma, the most deadly type of skin cancer.

Studies have shown that the risk of melanoma after any sunbed use is 20% higher, and this increases to 59% among those who were under the age of 35 when they used sunbeds.

The results of the undercover survey were welcomed by the ICS's head of advocacy, Kathleen O'Meara.

"We are working towards a future without cancer and measures that prevent people from engaging in activities that substantially increase their cancer risk, such as sunbed use, will really help us achieve this vision," she commented.

However, the ICS expressed concern about promotions being offered by some salons.

In March of this year, reduced price promotions which encourage sunbed use were also made illegal. However, two of the salons visited by the 17-year-old were offering promotions and discounts, such as a 30% discount if used before 2pm.

Ms O'Meara said that the ICS ‘is concerned that tanning salons are still using discounted deals and price-based marketing practices encouraging sunbed use, which has been illegal since March'.

"As well, alarmingly, one salon advised the fair-skinned girl to increase her sunbed use to eight-to-nine minutes per session, and encouraged the use of a tan accelerator. While we appreciate it will take some time for the second phase of the legislation to take effect, we urge Government to ensure that tanning salons are fully compliant with all elements of the sunbed legislation," she commented.

She pointed out that the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) puts sunbeds in the highest cancer risk category. In other words, sunbeds are as carcinogenic as smoking.

"The most advanced countries in the fight against skin cancer are now banning sunbeds entirely - there is a total ban in Brazil, and a majority of states in Australia have banned commercial sunbeds. Given our rising skin cancer rates and our fair-skinned population, the Government should be considering a total ban on commercial sunbed use," Ms O'Meara added.

For more information on the laws relating to sunbed use, click here