Haze Tobacco Class Action Says Hookah Products Falsely Advertised

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Haze Tobacco LLC is facing a proposed consumer class action lawsuit brought by a California resident who alleges the company deceitfully misrepresents the amount of nicotine in its flavored tobacco products as well as falsely advertises its products as being Made in the USA.

Texas-based Haze Tobacco manufactures, markets and sells hookah products such as hookahs, flavored tobacco, and charcoal, including Don Fizzle flavored tobacco throughout the state of California and online through its website.

Haze’s company website markets its hookah products as “Made in USA Quality Guaranteed” and its Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) page states that Haze’s products are manufactured in Stafford, Texas.

But plaintiff Michael Chahini of San Diego alleges that Haze illegally and unfairly made these misrepresentations to its customers, when in fact the products were made and manufactured in other countries.

Chahini states that he and other consumers would not have otherwise purchased Haze’s tobacco products if it were not for these false representations, which enabled Haze Tobacco to reap windfall profits from the sale of cheaper goods made in foreign countries.

He filed the second amended complaint in California Superior Court for Violation of the Consumers Legal Remedies Act (CLRA) and California’s Unfair Competition Law (UCL), hoping to certify a Class of California consumers who purchased Haze Tobacco products.

Chahini says he visited a Haze Tobacco retailer in San Diego, Calif. in July 2015 to purchase flavored tobacco products for his hookah, deciding to purchase and subsequently use the flavored product based on the labeling that it only contained 0.05 percent nicotine.

However, Chahini asserts that Haze misrepresents the amounts of dangerous nicotine it puts in its tobacco products.

“Preying on consumers attempting to balance their nicotine addictions with the potential dangerous health problems associated with nicotime use, Defendant actively and affirmatively misrepresents that its prodcuts only contain exactly 0.05% nicotine,” the lawsuit states.

Additionally, the advertised American origin of Haze’s “Don Fizzle” flavored tobacco was purportedly a significant factor in Chahini’s decision to purchase the product. Chahini claims he typically opts to purchase tobacco products Made in the USA because he contends that they are generally safer and of higher quality, according to the class action lawsuit.

Instead, Chahini alleges that Haze Tobacco products are manufactured in foreign countries and its products contain double the stated amount of harmful nicotine in them.

“[Chahini] saw and relied on Defendant’s deceptive label when he purchased the Defendant’s Don Fizzle flavored tobacco product…had [Chahini] known the reality of harm caused by using Defendant’s extra potent flavored tobacco, [Chahini] never would have bought the offending product,” the lawsuit reads.

Chahini is asking the court to impose an injunction to halt Haze Tobacco’s “unlawful, unfair and fraudulent conduct,” as well as monetary damages and restitution to compensate a proposed Class of California purchasers who were unfairly deceived into buying Haze’s inaccurately labeled tobacco products for consumption since July 27, 2011.

Chahini is represented by Craig M. Nicholas of Nicholas & Tomasevic LLP.

The Haze Tobacco Class Action Lawsuit is Chahini v. Haze Tobacco LLC, Case No. 37-2015-00025590-CU-BT-CTL, in the Superior Court of the State of California in and for the County of San Diego.