Coppertone No Difference in Sport Mineral Face Sunscreen Class Action

Beiersdorf, Inc. makes a line of Coppertone Sport Mineral sunscreens that include a Coppertone Sport Mineral Face product. This sells for considerably more than the basic Coppertone Sport Mineral sunscreen, but the complaint alleges that the two products are actually identical and that consumers are being overcharged for the Face product.

Page 1 of the complaint shows an image of the Coppertone Sport Mineral Face product, a tube bearing the word “Face” in all capital letters in the center of the front label. The tube also bears the words “Won’t Run Into Eyes” and “Oil Free.” These things, the complaint alleges, lead consumers to believe that the product is formulated especially for use on the face and make them willing to pay more for it.

The complaint alleges, “In fact, per ounce, the Sport Mineral Face lotion costs twice as much as Coppertone’s regular (i.e., non-face) Sport Mineral lotion. But reasonable consumers buy it anyway, because they want a product that is specifically formulated for use on their face[s].”

But the complaint claims that the “Face” lotion is no different than the regular Coppertone Sport Mineral lotion. The company, it says, “is putting the same sunscreen into two different bottles with different labels. Consumers are being deceived and overcharged.”

The regular lotion comes in five-ounce tubes, while the Face product comes in 2.5-ounce tubes. The primary difference, other than the size, the complaint claims, is that the Face tube has representations that may make a difference to consumers applying it to the face. These include that the product “Won’t Run Into Eyes” and that it doesn’t contain oil, which can clog pores and lead to skin breakouts.

The two products are usually priced the same, even though the Face product contains half as much lotion as the regular product, making it cost twice as much per ounce, and supporting the idea that is has been specially formulated.

The counts include violation of state consumer protection acts, California’s Unfair Competition Law, and California’s False Advertising Law, as well as for unjust enrichment.

A class and two subclasses have been defined for this action:

• The Nationwide Class is all persons who bought a Coppertone Sport Mineral Face product in the US during the applicable statute of limitations.
• The Consumer Protection Subclass is consumers in the above class who live in California, Illinois, Maryland, New York, Missouri, Washington, and Connecticut with certain consumer protection laws.
• The California Subclass is consumers in the above class who bought the Coppertone Sport Mineral Face product in California.

Article Type: Lawsuit
Topic: Consumer
Tags: Deceptive Advertising, Deceptive Labels, Different Price for Same Products