Coppertone settlement: 'False' sunscreen claims cost $3M to $10M
Coppertone settlement has been reached by parent company Merck, bringing a decade-old lawsuit to a close. The lawsuit alleged that Coppertone made false claims about its sunscreen, and the Coppertone settlement will cost Merck between $3 million and $10 million in payouts.
The logo for Coppertone sunscreen is shown in this 2009 commercial file photo. Merck and Co will pay between $3 million and $10 million to plaintiffs as part of a Coppertone settlement of a lawsuit alleging that company made fasle claims about the benefits of its sunscreen products.
Rick Maiman/AP Images for Coppertone/File
Merck & Co has agreed to pay between $3 million and $10 million to settle a nearly decade old class-action lawsuit that alleged the company made false claims about the benefits of its聽Coppertone聽sunscreen products.
Merck acquired the popular聽Coppertone聽franchise in 2009 when it bought U.S. rival Schering-Plough Corp, and thereby inherited the 2003 lawsuit.
Merck denied any wrongdoing or liability or that anyone was harmed by the allegedly exaggerated claims for聽Coppertone聽sprays and lotions cited in the lawsuit, which was filed on behalf of numerous consumers.
It agreed to the settlement "solely for the purpose of avoiding the burden, expense, risk and uncertainty of continuing to litigate those issues," the company said in the settlement agreement filed last Friday in the聽U.S. District Court聽for the District of聽New Jersey.
Merck agreed that all聽Coppertone聽sunscreen products manufactured on or after June 22, 2012 for sale in the United States, its territories and possessions, will not use the terms "sunblock," "waterproof," "sweatproof," "all day" and/or "all day protection" in the label, advertising, marketing or promotion of the products.
Once the settlement becomes final, members of the class who bought the聽Coppertone聽products at issue will be able to submit a claim worth up to $1.50 for each eligible sunscreen product purchased.
Merck spokesman聽Ron Rogers聽said all聽Coppertone聽products meet the latest standards for broad-spectrum sun protection set by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, and added they carry product information consistent with the FDA standards.