Class 2 Medicines Recall: Beckton Dickson UK Ltd, ChloraPrep 1mL applicator, EL(26)A/34
Read and act on the official notice on GOV.UK
The defect may cause mistreatment or harm to the patient, but it is not life-threatening or serious.
What all four recall classes mean
| Class | Action | The MHRA's definition |
|---|---|---|
| Class 1 | Immediate action | The defect presents a risk of death or disability. |
| Class 2 this recall | Action within 48 hours | The defect may cause mistreatment or harm to the patient, but it is not life-threatening or serious. |
| Class 3 | Action within 5 days | The defect is unlikely to cause harm to the patient. |
| Class 4 | Caution in use | Usually minor defects in packaging or other printed materials. |
A Class 1 recall usually comes with a National Patient Safety Alert. Source: MHRA, safety communications.
In plain English, for the pharmacy team
Why is this relevant to community pharmacy
ChloraPrep 1mL applicator is a skin preparation used by healthcare professionals. The company is recalling certain batches because there may have been a breach of sterility in the packaging process. This matters to pharmacy staff because the affected stock must not be supplied and may still be in store or on order.
What to tell patients
Use your professional judgement for each patient.
- No further action is required by patients, as this product is used by healthcare professionals and they will have removed it from use.
- If you have had an adverse reaction, or have any questions about your medicine, seek medical attention.
- Any suspected adverse reactions should be reported through the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) Yellow Card scheme.
What needs to be done
- Stop supplying the affected batches of ChloraPrep 1mL applicator.
- Quarantine all remaining stock of the affected batches.
- Return the stock to your supplier using your supplier’s approved process.
- Pharmacists: be aware this recall applies to batches with an expiry date up to and including 05/2029, as listed in the notice.
- If patients or healthcare professionals ask, explain that the notice says the recall is a precautionary measure because of a possible sterility issue and a possible higher infection risk.
- Read and act on the official GOV.UK notice.
Pharmshark summary, checked and approved by Chris Dotchin on 2 Nov 2026. It is not the official notice: always read and act on the GOV.UK notice.
How this summary was written
An AI tool drafted it from the MHRA's own notice and nothing else. A second check compared every line with the notice. Pharmshark's clinical lead then read it against the notice, edited it where needed and approved it. If the MHRA changes the notice, this summary is taken down until it has been checked again.
The MHRA's summary
Becton Dickinson UK Ltd are recalling batches of ChloraPrep 2% w/v / 70% v/v cutaneous solution 1mL applicators due to a potential breach of sterility in the packaging process.
Affected batches
As listed by the MHRA, exactly as published. Always check against the GOV.UK notice before acting.
Not the full list. Further batches are listed in an annex to the notice — open the GOV.UK notice for every batch.
| Batch number | Expiry | Pack size | First distributed |
|---|---|---|---|
| ChloraPrep 1mL Applicator | |||
| All lots with an expiry date up to and including 05/2029* | All lots with an expiry date up to and including 05/2029* | ChloraPrep 1mL Applicator: 60 applicators | 25/06/2025 |
MHRA's audience tags: Dispensing GP practices, Pharmacy