Why your favourite sunscreen is being pulled from shelves.

Earlier this year, cult Australian sunscreen brand Ultra Violette faced a reckoning. Now we know how the sunscreen saga ends.

In June, an investigative report by Australian consumer testing group Choice found only four of 20 sunscreens tested provided the SPF protection claimed on the label.

This included three children's sunscreens, three sold by the Cancer Council, and Ultra Violette's Lean Screen SPF 50+.

In a statement shared to Instagram today, the brand announced that Lean Screen SPF 50+ will be withdrawn from the market, effective immediately.

The decision was made after rigorous testing from multiple labs found that the Lean Screen product showed atypical variability in the SPF.

Lean Screen SPF 50+ launched in 2023 and was stocked via their direct-to-consumer website and beauty retailers, including Sephora Australia, Adore Beauty and The Iconic.

Ultra Violette was founded in late 2018 by former MECCA employees Ava Chandler-Matthews and Bec Jefferd.

The Ultra Violette Lean Screen statement.

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A post shared by Ultra Violette Australian Sunscreen (@ultravioletteau)

"As a sunscreen brand, our responsibility has always been to prioritise your safety, protection and skin health above all else. Trust is built and rebuilt over time, and we know we have work to do," the statement read.

Co-founders Ava Chandler-Matthews and Bec Jefferd said they'd had multiple, independent labs conduct new tests of Lean Screen SPF 50+.

Results demonstrated "significant and, candidly, atypical variability" in the product's SPF protection.

After returning SPF data of 4, 10, 21, 26, 33, 60, 61, and 64, the product is in the process of being withdrawn from the market, effective immediately.

The brand confirmed all purchases of the product will be eligible for a refund and product voucher, regardless of when and where the product was purchased.

Customers have been asking the brand for regular updates since doubts over Lean Screen's efficacy were raised.

Mamamia understands the Australian-born co-founders were committed to ensuring their customers were the first to hear of this news.

The brand shared the results of all eight independent tests on Lean Screen's efficacy. Image: Ultra Violette.

The co-founders' statement added, "[These results weren't] good enough for us, and it isn't good enough for you.

"We are deeply sorry that one of our products has fallen short of the standards we pride ourselves on and that you have come to expect of us."

"We understand this is an unsettling time [for] customers of ours. Your trust and support mean everything to us, and we are so sorry to have let you down. We understand that trust takes time to rebuild, and we are taking steps to ensure this never happens again."

Back to the beginning: What was the Choice SPF report?

On June 12, 2025, Choice published an article titled: We tested the SPF claims of 20 sunscreens. 16 failed.

The piece outlined a Choice investigation into whether a variety of sunscreens delivered their advertised SPF claims.

While no sunscreen can protect against 100 per cent of all UV radiation, SPF ratings are a measure of how effective the sunscreen is at protecting your skin from UVB rays.

For example, a TGA-listed sunscreen with an SPF rating of 50 is approved to protect the skin 50 times more compared to unprotected skin.

While a number of sunscreens from brands, including The Cancer Council, Bondi Sands, Neutrogena, Nivea, Invisible Zinc, Coles, Woolworths, Aldi and Banana Boat were found to not match their advertised SPF rating, Ultra Violette's Lean Screen was the worst performer with a primary result of SPF 4 and a secondary testing result of SPF 5.

Ultra Violette's responses.

Initially, Ultra Violette refuted Choice's findings, issuing several statements and updates to their customers and the public.

In a video shared to Instagram on June 13, Ultra Violette co-founder Ava Chandler-Matthews said Ultra Violette completely rejected the findings and stood by their own independent testing.

The brand also confirmed they had learnt of Choice's findings months prior to the publication of the investigation, and had immediately conducted further testing on the product that conflicted with results obtained by Choice.

At the time, Choice CEO Ashley de Silva said the company "stands by its rigorous, independent sunscreen testing" and publicly released all its test results.

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A post shared by Ultra Violette Australian Sunscreen (@ultravioletteau)

What has the TGA said?

On Thursday, the TGA published a statement on its website confirming their investigation is ongoing, and that the process will take time "given the complexity and scale of the material involved."

"The TGA is currently reviewing existing SPF testing requirements. In doing so, the TGA is exploring alternative test methods that may be more reliable, including in vitro test methods."

What's next?

According to Ultra Violette, the brand's entire range outside of Lean Screen — which they confirmed was the only Ultra Violette SPF product made by a third-party manufacturer — was recently re-tested at independent third-party labs, with their results validating all original testing.

"We have not found this level of inconsistency [with the other SPF products], so you can be assured, the remainder of the range is safe to keep using," they said.

Ultra Violete has also communicated changes to the standard of testing for all future products, which can be found in the comprehensive statement on their website.

If you wish to claim a refund and have purchased after January 2023, please fill out this form here.

Customers can read Ultra Violette's full statement and access information on product refunds on their website.

Image: Instagram.