Get the lot done in one sitting

The pre-op assessment is £75. Removal of up to four tags starts at £250, and five to ten tags starts at £495. Those are prices for the group rather than per tag, so having several done together is much better value than one at a time. More than ten is priced at your assessment. Final fees depend on the number, size and site of the tags and are confirmed before anything is booked.

Two reasons. Somebody needs to confirm that each growth really is a harmless skin tag, and the price depends on counting them accurately. At the £75 assessment your surgeon checks every one you are concerned about, works out which price band you fall into and gives you a firm figure. If you decide not to go ahead, you simply pay for the consultation and leave with a clear answer.

By curettage. The area is numbed with local anaesthetic and your surgeon uses a curette, a small scoop-shaped instrument, to lift each tag away at its base. Because a skin tag sits on the surface on a narrow stalk, stitches are usually not needed and the site heals more like a graze than a cut.

You will feel a sting as the local anaesthetic goes in, and after that the area is numb. You should feel pressure but no pain. Afterwards the sites can feel tender in the way a graze does for a day or two, and paracetamol is usually more than enough. You are awake throughout and can drive yourself home.

Please do not, however much the internet suggests it. Home removal risks bleeding that is harder to stop than you expect, infection in a skin fold, and a worse mark than a proper removal leaves. The more serious problem is that you are assuming the growth is a skin tag. If it turns out to be something else, you have damaged the very thing a clinician would want to examine, and you have no specimen to send anywhere.

A tag that has been properly removed does not usually return in the same spot. However, if you are prone to them you are likely to develop new ones over time, particularly in the same skin folds where friction encourages them. That is not a failure of the treatment, and new tags can be dealt with the same way if they bother you.

Usually the result is far less noticeable than the tag was. Each site tends to heal as a small flat mark that can stay slightly paler or pinker than the skin around it for a few months. On the eyelids and neck, where the skin is thin, results are generally very good. Your surgeon will talk through what to expect for your particular sites at the pre-op.

They form where skin rubs against skin or clothing, so folds are the usual sites, and some people are simply more prone than others. Age and pregnancy both make them more likely, and they often run in families. They are not caused by poor hygiene and they are not contagious, so nobody catches them from you. If a lot of new ones appear over a short period, it is worth mentioning to your GP.

Tags on the eyelids are common and are one of the sites people most want dealt with. They do need assessing individually, because how close the tag sits to the eye itself affects how it is approached. Bring them to the pre-op and your surgeon will tell you plainly whether they can be treated here or are better handled elsewhere.

These are very common, entirely routine for us, and often the ones causing the most irritation. Wear something that gives easy access to the area on the day. Afterwards, giving those sites a few days away from tight clothing or a rubbing strap helps them settle, since friction is exactly what slows healing in a fold.

Up to ten, yes, and that is the sensible way to do it. Beyond ten, your surgeon will advise at the assessment what can reasonably be done in one sitting and whether it is better split across two appointments. Bring every tag you want dealt with, wherever they are on your body.

For growths that are clearly skin tags, histology is not usually needed. If your surgeon has any doubt about one of them, they may recommend sending it to the lab, which carries an additional laboratory fee. That is discussed and quoted at your consultation rather than sprung on you afterwards.

Removal purely because you dislike them or they catch on clothing is generally not funded, which is why most people come privately. If a growth is clinically suspicious, that is a different matter and should be assessed, so see your GP promptly. If anything concerns us at your assessment, we will tell you and help you get to the right place.

No. You can book the pre-op assessment yourself, online or by calling 029 2199 9300. If you would rather have them looked at by a doctor first, a private GP appointment is another way in.

We work with Bupa, AXA Health, WPA, Vitality, Aviva, Cigna, Healix, Saga and Allianz and will help with pre-authorisation paperwork. Be aware that cosmetic removal of harmless skin tags is not usually something insurers cover, so most patients pay privately for this one. Contact us with your insurer details and we will advise.

Your £75 pre-op assessment can be at either clinic, Penarth or Cowbridge, whichever is easier to get to. The procedure itself is carried out at Penarth, 13 Washington Buildings, Stanwell Road, CF64 2AD, about 10 minutes from Cardiff city centre with free street parking. Our Cowbridge clinic is at Beauty Within, 10 High Street, CF71 7AG.