are you allowed to work as a masseuse without having any massage qualifications?

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jooragi

jooragi

jooragi

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Is this possible?

I am very good at giving massages. So far from all the close friends I have given them to have said I should open up a massage parlor.

I know that if you give someone too much of a hard massage it can damage their body and so you would be sued if you are not qualified and registered by some registering body in the UK.

What if you were to tell in advance your client that you have no massage qualifications and basically ask them if they would be happy to continue with the massage, surely I can't get into trouble for that?

Whether I tell the client that I am qualified or not I could tell them something like I only do massages for relaxation and not for pain. If you have a pain I recommend you see a physiotherapist and doctor.

I could even get them agree to signing paper work before I begin. That way if they try to be clever and lie claiming that I have messed up their body in the future just to get some compensation. I can just say that he/she signed paper work agreeing that they were happy that I was not qualified and agreed that this was a massage purely for relaxation and not to treat a pain or injury. Couldn't I do that?

I would love to hear your views on this?
 
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In our society these days, with the amount of litigation that goes on I bet you £10 you'd need some form of professional insurance\cover.

You're best off researching this properly. :)
 
I'd try asking a specialist or someone in the business. A computer hardware enthusiasts forum might not be the best places to start ;)

However given the diverse range of OCuK's members, it would't shock me at all if we have a someone who's already walked that path that could give you advice. :)

Edit: I'd also think getting qualifications wouldn't do you any harm either if you are thinking of opening your own parlour, expanding your knowledge and picking up new techniques can only be a good thing surely !
 
You can pratice alternative medicen with no formal paperwork, can you not? Afaik massage is the same. Make sure you have plenty of insurance cover. All it takes is one Chav to claim you maimed them with a neck rub and sue you into the ground.
 
I only know one person who's worked in a massage parlor, it was a topless massage parlour, she wasn't a fan pretty quickly, she didn't have any professional qualifications
 
I've been told the same. It's because everyone likes having massages and they tell you that so you won't stop/will do more.

The reality is it's pretty easy to beat some meat.
 
What you "learn" on a massage / therapy course is probably pure BS anyway, like people who spend years studying homeopathy, you may as well just make it up as you go along.
 
Having to agree to some sort of disclaimer that the person who's massaging me has no clue what their doing would put me right off tbh.

I would expect a half decent course would at least tell you what to do if someone forewarns you about a medical condition or something like that. I'm not saying it's science but I would imagine it's akin to watching someone do CPR and then saying you're a first-aider, when in reality you need to take a course to do it properly.

That said it's not like you'd have to go off and redo exams and stuff, I expect there's some sort of night course or "college" that wouldn't take that long that would tick whatever boxes you need to get started.
 
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blix said:
What you "learn" on a massage / therapy course is probably pure BS anyway, like people who spend years studying homeopathy, you may as well just make it up as you go along.
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Have you ever had a massage? There's a world of difference between a good and a bad one. It seems reasonable that you can learn how to do it properly.
 
Luw said:
And be prepared to give massages to some really unattractive women.
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And men too, I'm sure unpleasant things would happen if he tried to say women only, then again, I'm not sure how many men are comfortable with another man caressing them. :p
 
kylew said:
And men too, I'm sure unpleasant things would happen if he tried to say women only, then again, I'm not sure how many men are comfortable with another man caressing them. :p
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That's why a man get's a sports massage from another man, but a sensual massage from a woman or a woman get's
 
You will definitely need insurance, because there are lots of times you shouldnt give massages eg when someone has a cold, when someone has wounds, certain stages of cancer, dvt ....
if you massage someone who has one of those and you make their condition worse you will be bummed.
id recommend doing a short course to learn more about the ideas behind massage rather than technique (if you are happy with yours) and then registerring with the professional body.
 
Many thanks for all your useful posts

topbanana said:
You know a masseuse is the female version right? Masseur is the male.
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oops I forgot, I meant to say masseur, thanks for the correction!

A BTEC or ITEC diploma course is £1900 If you pay it in full or £2100 if you pay it in four installments. This course makes you a fully qualified massage therapist. You get to learn all about the anatomy among many other things to become an excellent massage therapist. You get ten hours of massage on yourself and have to give 100 hours on others. It's ten weekends so 2.5 months of work. The course has home study work and then a theory and practical exam.

So I don't think I will bother with the course

Here's my plan:

I will make some flyers and deliver them door to door

I will state on the flyer I only massage women and between the ages of 18-50 years old.

I only do house visits

I will work using an alias

I only accept cash

I make up a little story about how I moved from another country here and have taken a course, that's if they ask.

I won't bother taking out any insurance and I won't advertise my business online or register with any registering massage bodies.

I will only deliver the fliers outside in other towns from where I live

When clients call me to book a massage I will ask them why they need a massage and explain to them that I am qualified to give massages for relaxation and I cannot treat pain or injury for that you would need to seek medical advice and go to a physiotherapist. I will further ask them if they have any illnesses long term, or a fever, cold or migraine. If they do have any of these then I will not give a massage.

I think this protects me completely and would work very well. Using an alias on the flyer and in person is excellent as if someone was to ever find out I am not qualified and report me they would get nowhere. As they don't know my real name.

The only problem is, these days you can never quite how people react, there are some really weird people and you go to their homes you don't know if they are secretly filming you or are some killer or thief or whatever. The beauty of having your own massage parlor is you can stop all that. If they do film me secretly in their homes and later find I am not qualified or am not who I say I am and report me then I am in deep poo as they have a secret film to show. But hey perhaps I am being paranoid about that. I know that the best thing you can do is give some one like a close friend or family the address of the client you are going to visit so if something does ever happen they can come looking for you.

But anyway do you think my plan works well?
 
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