Consumer NZ says people should use their database to check which laboratory tested their sunscreen. Photo: 123RF
Consumer New Zealand say price is no indication of the effectiveness of sunscreens.
Almost two dozen sunscreens in Australia have been recalled, paused or are under review because of concerns over their SPF ratings.
Some of them are available - or can be bought online - in New Zealand.
Consumer NZ test writer Belinda Castles said price was not an indicator of effectiveness, with some of those called out being very expensive.
"The Ultra Violette, one that sort of kicked off this whole issue was retailing for over $50 for a very small bottle, so you know when you're spending that money on sunscreen you expect it to be doing what the label says it should."
Every sunscreen went through the same testing process, no matter what price it was, she said.
"Over many years we've found some of the cheapest sunscreens we've tested have met their label claims."
The testing regime meant that a product only needed to be tested once, she said.
"So once a product has had its test it can go several years without testing and we've found many products that do do that."
That was not good enough, she said.
"Some small New Zealand companies are actually testing annually or every second year which we think they should be.
"Some of these sunscreen companies are big players and it costs a few thousand dollars to test a sunscreen, it's not cheap, but you know skin cancer rates are really high in New Zealand, as is melanoma, and sunscreens need to be fit for purpose."
The recent situation in Australia raised concerns about the testing laboratory that was conducting the tests, she said.
"A few years ago we had the issue with AMA labs in the US and that was found to be fraudulently testing products and there's been concerns raised about this particular lab, PCR, that has been testing the sunscreens in question in Australia."
Consumer NZ had a database of sunscreens and companies were asked to say where their sunscreens had been tested, she said.
"Some have been using PCR, so it's definitely concerning and you know a lot of these sunscreen companies some actually have the same formula which was found in Australia - so it's one big manufacturing company and then the sunscreen is marketed under different brands."
The latest recall was a major concern in terms of potentially knocking people's confidence in using sunscreen, she said.
"We really do need people to be wearing sunscreen. Sunscreen does work when it's applied properly and you know, you need to use a lot of sunscreen - seven to nine teaspoons in one application - and reapply it."
If your bottle of sunscreen was lasting you all summer then you probably were not using enough of it, she said.
People should check which testing laboratory the sunscreen manufacturer has used on the Consumer NZ database, she said.
"So long as a sunscreen has been tested by a reputable laboratory it should be meeting its claims regardless of the price."
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