Consumers allege P&G, Arm & Hammer ‘unscented’ deodorants contain fragrance

Deodorant class action lawsuits overview:

• Who: Two consumers filed separate class action lawsuits against Church & Dwight Co. Inc. and The Procter & Gamble Company.
• Why: The plaintiffs claim Arm & Hammer and Native deodorants are falsely marketed as “unscented” despite containing fragrance ingredients.
• Where: The class action lawsuits were both filed in New York federal court.

Two new class action lawsuits accuse Church & Dwight and P&G of falsely marketing deodorants as “unscented” despite the products containing fragrance ingredients.

Plaintiff Mark Glickman filed his class action complaint against Church & Dwight on Aug. 12, claiming the company’s Arm & Hammer Essentials Unscented Deodorant and Arm & Hammer UltraMax Unscented Antiperspirant and Deodorant contain Ethylene brassylate, a fragrance ingredient not disclosed on the front label.

The same day, plaintiff Maria Chiaravalloti filed a similar class action lawsuit against P&G, alleging the company’s Native Unscented Deodorant contains Zingiber officinale, or ginger root extract, another fragrance ingredient missing from the product’s front-label claims.

Both complaints argue fragrance ingredients can cause skin irritation and sensitivities in some consumers, a general risk cited to explain why shoppers seek out unscented products. 

Glickman seeks to represent a class of New York consumers who purchased Arm & Hammer Essentials Unscented Deodorant or Arm & Hammer UltraMax Unscented Antiperspirant and Deodorant within the last four years. 

Chiaravalloti seeks to represent New York consumers who purchased Native Unscented Deodorant during the same period. Both class action lawsuits accuse the companies of violating New York consumer protection laws, and both plaintiffs have demanded a jury trial.

Native deodorant costs more per ounce than scented version, lawsuit claims

In her class action lawsuit, Chiaravalloti argues that Native Unscented Deodorant costs $5.28 per ounce compared with $4.35 per ounce for the brand’s Sea Salt & Cedar scented version.

Chiaravalloti argues that consumers are willing to pay a premium for unscented products, believing they are free from fragrance ingredients. She claims she and other consumers would not have purchased the deodorant, or would have paid less, if they had known it contained a fragrance ingredient.

Meanwhile, Glickman argues consumers are unlikely to recognize unfamiliar chemical names on ingredient lists, making the front-label “unscented” claim misleading regardless of what appears in fine print.

Both complaints argue reasonable consumers should not be expected to decipher unfamiliar chemical names in an ingredient list to learn a product contains fragrance, particularly when the front label makes an unqualified “unscented” promise.

In another such case, Lume is accused of falsely advertising its deodorant products as being unscented despite the products containing Floral Pyranol, a fragrance ingredient most consumers are unlikely to recognize.

Have you ever purchased Arm & Hammer or Native unscented deodorant? Let us know in the comments.

The plaintiffs are represented by Jack Fitzgerald of Fitzgerald Monroe Flynn P.C. and Brittany S. Scott of Smith Krivoshey P.C.

The Arm & Hammer deodorant class action lawsuit is Glickman v. Church & Dwight Co. Inc., Case No. 2:26-cv-04936, in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York. The Native deodorant class action lawsuit is Chiaravalloti v. The Procter & Gamble Company, Case No. 1:26-cv-06902, in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York.

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