Unilever Agrees to $10M Suave Keratin Infusion Class Action Settlement

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According to documents filed Friday in Illinois federal court, Unilever United States Inc. has agreed to pay $10.2 million to settle a class action lawsuit accusing it of marketing and selling a Suave-brand hair treatment that causes significant hair loss.

The Suave Keratin class action lawsuit was initially filed in August 2012 on behalf of a class of consumers who purchased or used Suave Professionals Keratin Infusion 30-Day Smoothing Kit, a product that was recalled in May 2012. The plaintiffs alleged that the product included dangerous ingredients that caused injuries, and that Unilever failed to properly inform consumers about the proper way to use the product to avoid injury.

The Suave Keratin class action lawsuit asserted claims against Unilever for breach of warranty, violation of consumer fraud and deceptive trade practices statutes and unjust enrichment arising from the manufacture, advertising and sale of the Suave Keratin Infusion smoothing kit. According to the plaintiffs’ motion supporting preliminary approval of the class action settlement, between 225,000 and 260,000 smoothing kits were sold.

Class Members of the proposed Suave Keratin settlement include all individuals who purchased or used the Suave Professionals Keratin Infusion 30-Day Smoothing Kit before Feb. 17, 2014.

Under the terms of the proposed Suave Keratin class action settlement, Unilever will pay $10 million to establish two settlement funds: a reimbursement fund and a personal injury fund. The $250,000 reimbursement fund will be available to Class Members who purchased a Suave Professionals Keratin Infusion 30-Day Smoothing Kit, providing a $10 refund for the past purchase of the product.

The class action settlement injury fund will provide relief to Class Members who suffered bodily injuries to their hair or scalp as a result of using the Suave keratin treatment. Class Members who incurred expenses for hair treatment but who no longer have receipts for their expenditures will be eligible to receive up to $40 per claimant. Class Members who have receipts from their treatments will be eligible to receive up to $800 per claimant for their expenses. Class Members who suffered significant bodily injury to their hair or scalp will be eligible to receive up to $25,000 per claim.

The Suave Keratin settlement will also resolve several similar class action lawsuits that were filed in Kentucky and California.

The Suave Keratin class action settlement agreement was reached after nearly 18 months of litigation and lengthy mediation sessions with former U.S. District Judge Wayne Andersen. According to the court documents, the plaintiffs believe that the settlement agreement is “fair, reasonable, adequate and in the best interests of the Named Plaintiffs and the putative Settlement Class. Unilever, denying wrongdoing of any nature and without admitting liability, has agreed to the settlement terms in order to address claims brought by consumers of Unilever products, and in order to avoid the burdens of continuing discovery expenses and litigation.”

The plaintiffs are represented by Marvin A. Miller, Lori A. Fanning and Andrew Szot of Miller Law LLC; Peter Safirstein, Christopher S. Polaszek and Elizabeth S. Metcalf of Morgan & Morgan PC; and Jana Eisinger of Law Office of Jana Eisinger PLLC.

The Suave Keratin Infusion Class Action Lawsuit is Sidney Reid, et al. v. Unilever United States Inc., et al., Case No. 1:12-cv-06058, in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois.

UPDATE: Details on how to file a claim for the Suave Keratin Infusion class action settlement can be found here in our Open Class Action Settlements section. The deadline to file a claim is Sept. 25, 2014.

UPDATE 2: The Suave Keratin Smoothing Kit class action settlement received final approval on July 9, 2014.

UPDATE 3: Two appeals were filed following final approval of the class action settlement, which has delayed the payment of claims. Viewers are reporting to us that the Settlement Administrator has contacted them to inform them that a Special Master has been appointed to review claims that that payments cannot be made until this process is complete and all appeals are resolved. Some Class Members have received Authorization and Request for Information forms requesting additional information such as their Social Security number. According to the Settlement Administrator: “Both the claims evaluation and the resolution of the appeals will take some time, at least several months, and we cannot estimate when claim payments will be made at this time.” We will continue to provide updates as we hear them. Keep checking back.

UPDATE 4: On Mar. 25, 2016, the 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed a $10.2 million class action settlement over allegations Unilever PLC’s Suave Keratin Infusion products caused consumers’ hair to fall out.

UPDATE 5: On Mar. 30, 2016, according to the settlement website, the settlement is expected to become final on June 23, 2016 and checks will be mailed out to Class Members in early July. 

UPDATE 6: On July 5, 2016, Top Class Actions readers who filed for Benefit Option A started receiving checks worth as much as $50! 

UPDATE 7: On July 12, 2016, Top Class Actions readers who filed for Benefit Option C started receiving checks worth as much as $10,060!