News in Brief April 13 – Kohl's, Ulta and More

Kohl’s Agrees to Preliminary “Fake Sale” Settlement

A settlement in a proposed class action that claimed Kohl’s altered the original price on “sale” items to make the deals look better has been granted preliminary approval. The judge found that the $6.15 million settlement would be “fair and reasonable” and adequately resolved the plaintiff’s claims. The settlement is expected to provide gift cards to certain Kohl’s shoppers in California.

McNabb Faces Lawsuit Over Synthetic Sunscreen Ingredients

McNabb is facing a proposed class action for allegedly marketing its Sunology sunscreens as “natural” when they actually contain synthetic ingredients. The plaintiff claims that she paid for a sunscreen that was “derived from nature” but was lied to and given a product with chemicals like zinc oxide and dimethicone. The proposed lawsuit is seeking to certify a class of New York consumers, as well as a nationwide class.

Melitta Hit with False Advertising Class Action

Melitta USA Inc. has been hit with a class action claiming that it hid the use of artificial flavoring in its coffee products. The lawsuit claims that this was an attempt to make consumers think the coffee was of a higher quality than it actually was. According to the plaintiff, she believed she was buying a gourmet product with natural flavors – not cheap coffee with artificial ingredients. The suit is looking to recover compensation on behalf of Melitta shoppers who purchased flavored coffees after March 29, 2010.

Ulta Accused of Shortchanging Customers

Ulta has been accused of shortchanging customers who return merchandise to the store. According to the proposed class action, Ulta doesn’t give shoppers back the money they paid out in sales tax, keeping the difference for itself. The complaint claims that Ulta’s return policy lets customers return products for a refund within 60 days and, by not granting the full refund, the beauty supplier is breaching the contract it has with consumers.