Kimberly-Clark Asks Court to Flush Scott Naturals Wipes Class Action

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Kimberly-Clark Corp. has asked a judge to dismiss a class action lawsuit alleging its Scott Naturals flushable wipes are misleadingly labeled because they contain synthetic ingredients.

According to Kimberly-Clark, the Scott Naturals flushable wipes products do not state that they are free of synthetic products; they only claim that the wipes are made with sustainable resources.

Scott Naturals flushable wipes are marketed to consumers who are environmentally conscious and the label does not indicate that the products are free of artificial ingredients, Kimberly-Clark says in support of its motion to dismiss the Scotts Naturals class action lawsuit.

Plaintiffs Heidi Arreola and Tim Dostal filed the Scott Naturals flushable wipes class action lawsuit last summer in New York federal court. They allege Kimberly-Clark falsely advertised its Scott Naturals Flushable Cleansing Cloths to appeal to health-conscious consumers, who are willing to pay a premium price for natural products over products that contain synthetic ingredients.

Arreola and Dostal claim that the Scott Naturals flushable wipes contain multiple synthetic ingredients, including sodium chloride, lauryl glucoside and malic acid, and that consumers would not know that the ingredients in the products are synthetic just by reading the label. According to the flushable wipes class action lawsuit, the determination that the ingredients are not natural “requires a knowledge of chemistry beyond that of the average consumer.”

The plaintiffs claim they purchased the products because they believed the Scott Naturals wipes were natural and did not contain synthetic ingredients. They allege they would not have been willing to pay as much for the product, or even purchase the product at all, if they had known the flushable wipes contained multiple synthetic ingredients.

“But the product never made any such promises, and the statements on each side of the package expressly refer to the product’s environmentally friendly attributes,” Kimberly-Clark says in support of its motion to dismiss the Scotts Naturals wipes class action lawsuit. The company accuses the plaintiffs of engaging in a “litigation-driven reading of the labels” that cannot support their consumer fraud claims.

The Scotts Naturals wipes class action lawsuit asserts claims for violations of New York business law, consumer protection laws in all 50 states, and the Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act. Arreola and Dostal accuse Kimberly-Clark of breaching express and implied warranties regarding the Scotts Naturals flushable wipes and claim the company has been unjustly enriched by the alleged misrepresentations.

The plaintiffs are seeking injunctive relief, monetary damages, punitive damages, attorneys’ fees and costs, and other relief the court deems proper.

Arreola and Dostal are represented by Jason P. Sultzer, Joseph Lipari and Adam Gonnelli of The Sultzer Law Group PC; Melissa Wolchansky of Halunen Law; and by Todd D. Carpenter of Carlson Lynch Sweet Kilpea & Carpenter LLP.

The Scott Naturals Flushable Wipes Class Action Lawsuit is Heidi Arreola, et al. v. Kimberly-Clark Corporation, Case No. 7:17-cv-05127, in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York.