Kimberly-Clark to Pay $20M Settlement to Consumers Nationwide Over Flushable Wipe Claims

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Kimberly-Clark Flushable Wipe Class Action Settlement Overview:

• Who: Kimberly-Clark has agreed to pay out $20 million to nationwide consumers of its flushable wipes and their lawyers.
• Why: The settlement will end claims made in a pair of class actions alleging its flushable wipes damage or clog pipes and septic systems.
• Where: The lawsuit was filed in New York federal court.

Kimberly-Clark has agreed to pay a $20 million settlement to end claims its flushable wipes actually damage and clog pipes with the settlement potentially benefiting consumers nationwide. 

In a proposed settlement filed Apr. 5 in a New York federal court, Kimberly-Clark agreed to the settlement to end two class actions lodged against it for similar complaints. 

If approved, anyone in the United States who bought the allegedly damaging wipes between May 2011 and the date the settlement is approved could be able to claim to get funds back. 

Under the agreement, settlement class members who submit claims without proof of purchase could get up to $7 while those with proof of purchase could get up to $50.60.

“The total monetary relief available to each Settlement Class Member under the Settlement is greater than in any other flushable wipes-related settlement to date,” the settlement memo states.

Those who have proof of purchase can receive a payment of $1.10 for each package of wipes up to the maximum. 

Kimberly-Clark Flushable Wipe Lawsuits Stretch Back to 2014, 2015

The litigation stretches back more than eight years to when named plaintiff D. Joseph Kurtz filed a proposed class action in February 2014, and Gladys Honigman filed a similar proposed class action in May 2015. 

Kimberly-Clark and the consumers reached the agreement after “substantial discovery” and negotiations, the proposed settlement states.

“The settlement is noteworthy given the price premium associated with the products’ ‘flushable’ representation, and the products’ performance during the settlement class period,” the consumers say.

More FlushableWipe Lawsuits Play Out Nationwide

The lawsuit comes after a judge last year granted preliminary approval in a Kimberly-Clark settlement over class action claims from the Charleston, South Carolina, water system that certain flushable wipes damaged the city’s sewer system.

Kimberly-Clark is the first to settle with Charleston, and last year a federal judge ruled that Costco, CVS, Walmart, Target and others can’t escape the class action lawsuit alleging they also made “flushable” wipes that allegedly caused major problems for the wastewater system of the city.

Other companies are also facing similar charges over their “flushable” wipes that consumers say aren’t actually flushable. TopCare is facing a class action lawsuit in New York alleging its flushable wipes lead to toilet clogs and sewer damage.

CVS is also facing a class action lawsuit in New York over its CVS Health Flushable Cleansing Wipes and CVS Health Maximum Strength Formula Medicated Wipes.

Have you ever experienced any plumbing issues from flushable wipe products? Let us know in the comments section!

The consumers are represented by Samuel H. Rudman, Vincent M. Serra, Francis P. Karam, Sarah E. Delaney, Stuart A. Davidson and Mark J. Dearman of Robbins Geller Rudman & Dowd LLP.

The Flushable Wipes Class Action Lawsuits are D. Joseph Kurtz v. Kimberly-Clark Corp. et al., Case No. 1:14-cv-01142, and Gladys Honigman v. Kimberly-Clark Corp., Case No. 2:15-cv-02910, both in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York.

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