Coronavirus Prompts Class Action Lawsuit Against Purell Over ‘Misleading Claims’
Amid the coronavirus pandemic, millions have flocked to local grocery and retail stores to stock up on hand sanitizer to combat the virus. However, one notable brand, Purell, is now under major heat, facing a class action lawsuit, for its ‘misleading claims” of germ-killing.
While the company’s manufacturer, Gojo Industries, lists that the product “kills 99.99% of illness causing germs,” the claim implies that this figure has been backed by scientific support. However, those suing the company say, none exists.
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Additionally, the class action suit claims that the company neither has support of its claim of “helping to prevent infection, as well as diseases such as the flu and the common cold.” Plaintiffs are seeking damages for any customer who bought the hand sanitizer and “relied upon the product’s packaging and marketing materials.”
In addition, the suit states, “The Warning Letter specifically noted that additional representations Defendant had made about the Products’ effectiveness against the flu, norovirus, and ebola were unsubstantiated insofar as the FDA was not aware of any study showing that killing bacteria or virus on skin reduced the likelihood of infection or disease in users.”
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Furthermore, sales of hand sanitizers shot up to 73 percent in the US within the past four weeks, amid the coronavirus. Within the last week of February, total sales in the US increased by 313.4 percent.
