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Banana Boat sunscreen class action overview:
- Who: A consumer who bought Banana Boat SPF 50 sunscreen for babies is suing manufacturer Edgewell Personal Care Brands.
- Why: The plaintiff says the company sells the same product for adults and babies, but more than doubles the price of the product for babies.
- Where: The Banana Boat sunscreen class action was filed in an Illinois federal court.
A consumer who bought Banana Boat SPF 50 sunscreen for babies has filed a class action lawsuit against manufacturer Edgewell Personal Care Brands, alleging the company sells almost the exact same product for adults, but at less than half the price.
Plaintiff Ryan Hengel filed the class action lawsuit against Edgewell Personal Care Brands on Nov. 25 in an Illinois federal court, alleging violations of state and federal consumer laws.
Edgewell manufactures and sells SPF 50+ sunscreen in stick form to babies as Simply Protect and adults as Sport Ultra under the Banana Boat brand.
Though the two products appear distinct, and the label on the baby variety contains numerous statements and features absent from the adult version, they are basically identical, yet sold at dramatically different prices, the lawsuit alleges.
Neutrogena sunscreen almost double the price of baby version
Hengel points out the federal government has made moves to prevent companies from leveling a “pink tax” or “kids tax” that makes identical products more expensive for parents and women.
According to his lawsuit, the back label of the baby sunscreen describes it as having “25% fewer ingredients” and “No Added Oils & Fragrances.” This marketing leads parents to believe the baby version is specifically designed for their babies’ needs, he says.
However, the products contain the same active ingredients in the same relative amounts, Hengel alleges. “Not only do the Products contain the relative identical amounts of active ingredients, their 14 inactive ingredients are present in the same relative amounts,” he says.
Despite this, on a per-ounce basis, the baby version is $13.52 and the adult version is $5.31.
“This means the Baby version is priced over 254 percent more than the identical Adult version,” the lawsuit states.
Hengel is looking to represent an Illinois class of consumers who purchased the baby version over the adult version, plus a consumer fraud multistate class of consumers from Utah, Idaho, Wyoming, Arkansas, Mississippi, North Dakota, West Virginia, Louisiana, Nebraska, Kansas, Montana and South Carolina.
He’s suing under Illinois and state consumer laws and accuses the company of breach of warranty, fraud and unjust enrichment. Hengel is seeking certification of the class action, damages, fees, costs and a jury trial.
Earlier this month, a consumer who bought Neutrogena SPF 50 sunscreen for babies sued manufacturer Johnson & Johnson, alleging the company sells almost the exact same product for adults, but at half the price.
Have you bought the Banana Boat baby sunscreen? Let us know your thoughts on these allegations in the comments.
The plaintiff is represented by Spencer Sheehan of Sheehan & Associates PC.
The Banana Boat class action lawsuit is Ryan Hengel, et al. v. Edgewell Personal Care Brands LLC, Case No. 3:22-cv-02741, in the U.S. District Court Southern District of Illinois, East St. Louis Division.
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6 thoughts onBanana Boat class action claims baby, adult sunscreens nearly identical
Bought this product for my granddaughter. Super expensive. Please add me.
Add me please.
Please add me.
Please add me
include me please
I have bought both adult and baby small and large. I feel like I was cheated