Target Seeks Dismissal of ‘Gentle’ Makeup Remover Towelettes Class Action

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Target is firing back at class action lawsuit allegations that its store-brand Up and Up makeup towelettes aren’t hypoallergenic.

Target asked the court to dismiss the proposed class action by arguing that the claims are nothing but “quintessential puffery,” and that Target’s marketing and labeling of the products does not constitute false advertising.

According to plaintiff Megan McAteer, who filed the Target makeup wipe class action lawsuit in February, the product contains harsh chemicals, a departure from its advertising as “hypoallergenic” and “gentle.” McAteer claims she purchased the product because it was advertised as gentle, but found that it irritated her skin and gave her a rash.

She seeks damages and a court order requiring Target to stop falsely advertising the towelettes.

Target argued against the Target makeup towelettes class action lawsuit by saying that there isn’t a concrete and agreed-upon standard for what “gentle” implies, so Target’s use of the term does not constitute an actionable misrepresentation.

McAteer alleges that Target’s use of the term “hypoallergenic” also constitutes false advertising and misrepresentation because for her the product caused an allergic reaction in the form of a rash. She goes on to claim that other consumers are likely to experience the same symptoms.

She states that some if the ingredients in the Up and Up towelettes are now human allergens, and that some cosmetic organizations have classified several of the ingredients as known irritants.

Target countered that claim by saying that no product can be “nonallergenic,” meaning that it causes no allergic reactions in any consumers, and that the term “hypoallergenic” means that a product is merely less likely than its competitors to cause an allergic reaction.

Target again pokes holes in McAteer’s allegations, saying that she has not been able to show how other phrases like “ultra soft cloths” contributed to the product’s misrepresentation, though she included them in what she argues qualified as misrepresentation.

According to Target, though McAteer claimed that she was financially injured by her purchase of the Up and Up towelettes because Target did not honor its money back guarantee, she cannot pursue injunctive relief because she allegedly did not attempt to return the product for a refund before filing a lawsuit.

In McAteer’s Target makeup remover class action lawsuit, she states that Target markets the makeup remover towelettes as comparable to an alternative, more expensive product — Neutrogena Night Calming Makeup Remover Cleansing Towelettes. She notes that though the Up and Up towelettes are advertised directly via their similarities to the Neutrogena product, they contain only four of the same ingredients. She argues that this claimed similarity also constitutes a misrepresentation.

McAteer is represented by Genevieve M. Zimmerman of Meshbesher & Spence LTD, Francis J. “Casey” Flynn, Jr. of the Law Office of Francis J. Flynn Jr., and Jasper D. Ward IV, and Alex Davis of Jones Ward PLC.

The Target Up and Up Makeup Remover Towelette Class Action Lawsuit is McAteer v. Target Corporation, Case No. 0:18-cv-00349-DWF-LIB, in the U.S. District Court for the District of Minnesota.