Target Hit With Flushable Wipes Class Action over Clogged Toilet

“Sewer and septic safe” are how flushable wipes are marketed, but some customers say this statement isn’t true.

The latest complaint is a flushable wipes class action lawsuit filed by Ohio Plaintiff Christopher Meta against Target for its up & up brand of flushable wipes. On their website, it says the wipes “break apart after flushing,” but Meta’s flushable wipes class action lawsuit says the opposite is true, causing clogged sewer lines and septic systems, backed up sewers, and plumbing issues.

Indeed, this is reportedly what happened to Mr. Meta as a result of his use of Target’s up & up flushable wipes. Meta alleges that so-called “flushable” wipes like Target’s are defective, because they are not flushable. Moreover, he says they are a public health hazard because they are clogging pumps at municipal waste treatment facilities.

Meta is not alone in his complaint. According to his flushable wipes lawsuit, “State and local sewer authorities, including Ohio’s, have been sounding the alarm – urging companies that sell these wipes to remove the ‘flushable’ claims from their products and attempting to educate consumers that contrary to the representations on the packaging, wipes like Up & Up are not safe for plumbing systems.”

But wipes marketers have so far been unwilling to remove the misleading claims and consumers continue to purchase the wipes in increasing numbers — perpetuating and worsening the public safety hazard.

Meta purchased the toddler up & up brand flushable wipes from a Target store in Boardman, Ohio for potty training his daughter. As intended and directed on the packaging, he disposed of the wipes by flushing them in his toilet.

During the summer of 2013, Meta started noticing plumbing issues in his home, like his toilet not flushing properly.

According to the flushable wipes class action lawsuit, in November 2013 he hired a plumber to figure out what was wrong. The plumber discovered that the clog was caused by the flushable wipes, and the wipes had collected in his plumbing and septic system. He spent more than $200 to have the system cleaned out.

This, however, was not all. the plumber also informed Meta that “the septic system could be permanently damaged due to the wipes, but that they would not be able to tell if that was the case until spring or summer 2014. If the septic system is ruined, then it may cost Mr. Meta as much as $20,000 to acquire a replacement system.”

Meta says had he known the statement on the label wasn’t true, he never would have bought the wipes. He adds, in his flushable wipes lawsuit, that “Target is well aware its ‘flushability’ claims are not true and that its product is defective.”

The flushable wipes class action is accusing Target of breach of warranty, negligent design, negligent failure to warn, breach of the implied warranty of merchantability, breach of the implied warranty of fitness for a particular purpose, violation of the Ohio Consumer Sales Practices Act and unjust enrichment.

Meta filed the flushable wipes class action lawsuit on behalf of all consumers in Ohio that purchased Target-brand up & up flushable wipes in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Ohio, Youngstown Division.

The Target Flushable Wipes Class Action Lawsuit is Christopher Meta v. Target Corporation, Case No. 4:14-cv-00832, in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Ohio, Youngstown Division.

UPDATE: On Sept. 20, 2016, an Ohio federal judge certified a Class of consumers bringing breach of warranty claims against Target over flushable wipes that allegedly do not disperse after flushing and instead result in clogged sewer lines and septic systems, causing sewage backups and even flooding.

UPDATE 2: May 2018, the Target flushable wipes class action settlement is now open. Click here to file a claim.

UPDATE 3: On May 11, 2019, Top Class Actions viewers started receiving checks in the mail worth as much as $27 from the Target flushable wipes class action settlement. Congratulations to everyone who filed a claim and got PAID!

Flushable Wipes Clogs and Plugs

The problem facing waste water treatment plants across the country is that people are buying into the marketing and sales of “flushable” wipes. According to the Target flushable wipes lawsuit, the Metropolitan Sewer District of Greater Cincinnati, Ohio reported that it spends about $100,000 each year to clean wastewater treatment pumps of “the products that do not break apart or dissolve when they enter the sewer system, such as baby wipes and wet wipes that are labeled as flushable.”

According to the National Association of Clean Water Agencies (NACWA), which represents the interests of nearly 300 publicly owned wastewater treatment agencies nationwide, cities across the country have “incurred hundreds of thousands of dollars in new equipment and maintenance costs to repair damage resulting from flushed wipes, and in some cases even more” over the past few years.

Join a Free Flushable Wipes Class Action Lawsuit Investigation

If you purchased flushable adult wipes, baby wipes or toddler wipes, you may be able to join a free class action lawsuit investigation.