Dress Barn Class Action Alleges Store Uses ‘Fictitious’ Original Prices To Make Discounts Appear Larger

Dress Barn False Reference Pricing Class Action Lawsuit Overview: 

• Who: Jaimie Hernandez filed a class action lawsuit against The Dress Barn, Inc. 
• Why: Hernandez claims Dress Barn uses false reference pricing on its website to make its sale items appear to be at greater discount than in reality. 
• Where: The class action lawsuit was filed in California federal court.

Dress Barn lists items for sale using a false reference price to make the discounts appear larger than they actually are, a new class action lawsuit alleges. 

Plaintiff Jaimie Hernandez claims Dress Barn deceives consumers with “fictitious ‘original’ prices and corresponding phantom discounts” on its website. 

Hernandez says she purchased four items using false reference pricing from Dress Barn’s website on or around April 1.

Due to the advertised reference price, Hernandez falsely believed she was getting a “significant discount” on her items, which included, among other things, a pair of skinny jeans and a lounge set, according to the Dress Barn class action. 

Hernandez argues further that the false reference pricing led her to believe that the discounted price would “likely not last,” further inducing her to make a purchase. 

In reality, the items listed for sale on Dress Barn’s website were never sold for the advertised reference price, the Dress Barn class action alleges. 

“Plaintiff reasonably relied upon Defendant’s artificially inflated reference prices and false discounts when purchasing products from Defendant’s e-commerce website,” the lawsuit states.

Dress Barn Class Action Claims Retailer Inflated Items’ ‘True Market Value’ 

The alleged false reference pricing also “inflated the true market value” of the items Hernandez purchased and has made her unsure whether she can trust Dress Barn to “accurately price its products truthfully” going forward. 

“Plaintiff may again, though by mistake, purchase a falsely discounted item from Defendant under the impression that the advertised reference price represented a bona fide former price at which the item was previously offered for sale by Defendant,” the class action states. 

Hernandez claims Dress Barn is in violation of California’s False Advertising Law, Unfair Competition Law and Consumer Legal Remedies Act. 

Hernandez wants to represent a California class of consumers who purchased an item on dressbarn.com that had an advertised reference price. 

Plaintiff is demanding a jury trial and requesting declaratory and injunctive relief along with actual, statutory and punitive damages for herself and all class members. 

A separate class action lawsuit was filed against Dress Barn by a wheelchair-bound consumer in 2014 who argued the store’s fitting rooms and restrooms were not compliant with federal and state disability laws. 

Have you purchased an item listed for sale on Dress Barn’s website? Let us know in the comments! 

The plaintiffs are represented by Todd D. Carpenter and Scott G. Braden of Lynch Carpenter LLP. 

The Dress Barn False Reference Pricing Class Action Lawsuit is Hernandez v. The Dress Barn, Inc., et al., Case No. 5:22-cv-00656, in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California.

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