Coppertone Settlement: Up To $10 Million For Exaggerating Sunscreen Claims


A Coppertone settlement reached after the sunscreen maker was accused of exaggerating the effectiveness of its product will reach up to $10 million.

The settlement was agreed to by Merck & Co., which inherited Coppertone sunscreen and its lawsuit when it bought rival Schering-Plough. A handful of people had sued Schlering-Plough claiming that it oversold claims about sunscreen in advertising and labeling, Fox Business reported.

The Coppertone settlement was filed Friday in a New Jersey district court, and specifies that Merck stop using terms “sunblock,” “waterproof,” “sweatproof,” “all day,” or “all day protection” in labeling or advertising of Coppertone sunscreen products. The new stipulations will go into effect for all products manufactured after June for sale in the US.

Merck did not admit any wrongdoing as part of the Coppertone settlement but said it settled to avoid “the burden, expense, risk and uncertainty” of continuing the suit.

“We believe the company provides consumers with accurate information regarding its suncare products, and, as it states in the settlement, this agreement is not any admission of wrongdoing, but the most appropriate way to put the matter behind us,” said Merck spokesman Ron Rogers, who noted that all Coppertone lotions and sprays are in compliance with the latest broad-spectrum sun protection standards from the US Food and Drug Administration.

Once the Coppertone settlement is finalized, members of the class-action lawsuit against he company will then be able to submit a claim for up to $1.5o for each eligible sunscreen product they purchased, Reuters reported.

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