The Central Consumer Protection Authority fined VLCC Rs 3 lakh for misleading ads on Lipolaser and CoolSculpting treatments. The watchdog said the company made false claims without scientific proof, violating consumer rights
The Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA) imposed a penalty of Rs 3 lakh on VLCC Limited on August 8, 2025,for publishing false and misleading advertisements about its Lipolaser and CoolSculpting fat-loss treatments.
The consumer authority found that VLCC had not shown any proper scientific studies to support its tall claim that customers could lose “up to 6cm and 400g in one session” with Lipolaser treatment.
According to the CCPA,
“The lack of regulatory approvals for the Lipolaser machine suggests a failure to meet safety standards, putting consumers at risk.”
Keeping this in mind, the CCPA fined VLCC Rs 3 lakh for spreading misleading advertisements about Lipolaser.
It also noted that VLCC is a big brand with a large market presence and had a turnover of more than Rs 35 crore in the years 2022-23 and 2023-24. The authority held that such misleading advertisements could have a strong impact on consumers.
The order stated,
“Considering the facts and circumstances of the case and having regard to the factors enumerated in section 21(7) of Act [factors to be considered while imposing penalty] to this case, the ССРА finds it necessary that opposite party shall pay a penalty of 3,00,000 for publishing false and misleading advertisement claims that affected the consumers as a class.”
This ruling was passed by Chief Commissioner Nidhi Khare and Commissioner Anupam Mishra.
The CCPA also examined VLCC’s CoolSculpting treatment advertisements, where the company claimed that clients could “drop 1 size in one session.”
On investigation, it was found that the effectiveness of CoolSculpting was tested only on 57 participants in a clinical trial conducted abroad, and these participants were Caucasians, Hispanics, and African Americans.
The trial data had been submitted earlier by Zeltiq Aesthetics to the US Food and Drug Administration. However, no Indian or Asian participants were included in the study. VLCC had failed to mention this fact in its advertisements, which the authority found misleading.
To prevent such consumer deception, the CCPA has now directed VLCC to clearly disclose in all its CoolSculpting advertisements—or in a separate disclaimer—the proper details about the treatment, including the exact body areas it targets for fat reduction, that it is suitable only for people with a Body Mass Index (BMI) of 30 or less, and that its clinical effectiveness was tested on limited demographics.
Another practice of VLCC also came under scrutiny. The company used to make its customers sign a declaration saying that
“lack of results will not be construed as a deficiency of service.”
The CCPA strongly objected to this, observing that,
“The declaration which the consumer is made to sign, negate the proclamations in the advertisements of VLCC. These clauses should have been added as a disclaimer in the advertisement. The clauses in the consent form raise serious doubts about the efficacy of the treatment as claimed in the advertisement.”
It further ordered the company to stop this practice, stating,
“The opposite party shall discontinue the practice of making the consumers agree to clauses which are unfair and prejudicial to consumer interest with an unfair motive to escape legal liability and accountability for the claims advertised.”
The case against VLCC was initiated after Hyderabad resident Ajay Gupta filed a complaint against a misleading advertisement by the company about fat-loss treatments, including CoolSculpting.
After examining the matter, the CCPA found that VLCC had made false and unsubstantiated claims in its advertisements. A prima facie case was made out, and in September 2023, the consumer authority issued a show cause notice to the company.
Later, an inquiry conducted by the Director General (DG) Investigation concluded that VLCC may have violated Section 2(8) of the Consumer Protection Act, 2019, which prohibits misleading advertisements.
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During the proceedings, VLCC agreed to discontinue the CoolSculpting advertisements that were under complaint. However, the company denied that it had misled its customers.
In its final ruling, the CCPA rejected VLCC’s defence and clearly held that consumer rights had been violated.
The order said,
“The opposite party (VLCC) has violated the provisions related to misleading advertisements … The right of the consumers have also been violated either by misleading advertisement and withholding important information regarding the product and services of VLCC.”
The case was argued on behalf of VLCC by Advocate Dhruv Wahi and Legal Manager Piyush Agarwal.
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