Most consumers read merchant reviews before they buy goods or services on the Internet. It’s therefore problematic, the complaint for this class action says, if a company suppresses reviews that feature lower ratings. The complaint alleges that Fashion Nova, LLC has allowed 4-star and 5-star reviews of its products to post automatically but has prevented 1-star, 2-star, and 3-star reviews from appearing.
The class for this action is all those who live in New Jersey who bought an item from Fashion Nova’s website in New Jersey, between March 23, 2016 and December 25, 2018.
The complaint quotes a Federal Trade Commission (FTC) press release from January 2022 as finding that “[F]rom as early as late 2015 through mid-November 2019, Fashion Nova chose to have four- and five-star reviews automatically post to the website but did not approve or publish hundreds of thousands lower-starred, more negative reviews.”
Fashion Nova sells merchandise primarily online, so that consumers cannot examine the products before they buy.
According to the complaint, 93% of adults in the US read reviews before making purchases online. The complaint shows a number of samples of one-star reviews that provide information that could be significant to those looking to purchase an item, such as that the item is smaller than usual for the size, that it is cheaply made, or that the zipper was already broken when the item arrived.
The complaint alleges, “In sum, from 2015 to 2019, consumers relied on [Fashion Nova’s] representations that the Products were highly rated by fellow consumers and did not have any issues.”
How did Fashion Nova suppress the lower-starred reviews? The complaint quotes the FTC again as claiming that Fashion Nova “installed a third-party online product review managements interface. The interface allow[ed] users to choose to have certain reviews automatically post based upon their star ratings and hold lower-starred reviews for client approval prior to posting.”
The complaint claims that Fashion Nova’s representations about its products were “materially misleading” because the lower-starred reviews were omitted. Had the full array of reviews been posted, the complaint alleges, consumers would not have bought the products or would have been willing to buy them only for significantly less money.
The sole count in this case is violation of the New Jersey Consumer Fraud Act, which forbids sellers from engaging in “any unconscionable commercial practice, deception, fraud, false pretense, false promise, misrepresentation, or the knowing concealment, suppression, or omission, in connection with the sale or advertisement of any merchandise.”
The complaint claims that Fashion Nova, in using the interface, “deliberately and knowingly engag[ed] in misleading, deceptive, and false statements” about its products in the course of its business, to get consumers to buy its merchandise.
Article Type: LawsuitTopic: Consumer
Most Recent Case Event
Fashion Nova Suppresses Lower-Starred Reviews New Jersey Complaint
April 18, 2022
Most consumers read merchant reviews before they buy goods or services on the Internet. It’s therefore problematic, the complaint for this class action says, if a company suppresses reviews that feature lower ratings. The complaint alleges that Fashion Nova, LLC has allowed 4-star and 5-star reviews of its products to post automatically but has prevented 1-star, 2-star, and 3-star reviews from appearing.
Fashion Nova Suppresses Lower-Starred Reviews New Jersey ComplaintCase Event History
Fashion Nova Suppresses Lower-Starred Reviews New Jersey Complaint
April 18, 2022
Most consumers read merchant reviews before they buy goods or services on the Internet. It’s therefore problematic, the complaint for this class action says, if a company suppresses reviews that feature lower ratings. The complaint alleges that Fashion Nova, LLC has allowed 4-star and 5-star reviews of its products to post automatically but has prevented 1-star, 2-star, and 3-star reviews from appearing.
Fashion Nova Suppresses Lower-Starred Reviews New Jersey Complaint