Flushable Toilet Wipes May Cause Serious Plumbing Problems
Last Updated on July 3, 2024
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Case Update
- July 3, 2024 – Costco Kirkland Signature Moist Flushable Wipes Lawsuit Settlement Website Is Live
- A $2 million settlement has been reached in a class action lawsuit filed over Costco’s Kirkland Signature-brand moist flushable wipes, and the official settlement website can be found at CostcoFlushableWipesSettlement.com.
The Costco wipes settlement covers anyone in the United States who purchased Kirkland Signature moist flushable wipes in New York between July 1, 2011 and May 31, 2017.
If you are not a current Costco member, you must file a claim by August 9, 2024 to receive settlement benefits. To submit a claim online, head to this page. You may also download the PDF claim form to return by mail.
If you currently maintain a Costco membership, you do not need to file a claim.
To submit a claim form, you will need the unique claim number located on the personalized notice you may have received. If you did not get a notice, you may still file a claim.
The settlement website shares that Costco will provide up to $2,000,000 to be distributed on a pro-rated basis among eligible class members who are Costco members, or submit valid, timely claims.
According to the Kirkland wipes settlement website, eligible class members may receive $1.30 for each product they purchased, with a minimum of $7.50 and a maximum of $55.90 to be paid per household.
Payments will be issued to eligible class members if the court grants final approval to the terms of the settlement following a hearing scheduled for August 30, 2024, and after any objections or appeals are resolved.
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At A Glance
- This Alert Affects
- Property owners who experienced plumbing problems after using flushable wipes.
- Allegations
- It is believed that "flushable" wipes may not break up in water, despite being labeled as biodegradable and sewer and septic safe.
- Problems
- Clogged pipes, septic backups, low water pressure and high utility costs.
- Manufacturers
- Kleenex Cottonelle, Charmin, Wet Ones, Equate, Kirkland and others.
- What Can I Collect?
- Those who used flushable wipes may be able to seek compensation for plumbing services and any other household damages from clogged pipes.
Consumers who experienced plumbing problems after using “flushable” toilet wipes from brands including Kleenex Cottonelle, Charmin, and Wet Ones may have legal recourse. Many of these wipes are marketed as being “flushable,” suggesting that they will break up in water the same way toilet paper does; however, consumers and sewage officials nationwide have complained that these wipes are not flushable, and are actually clogging pipes and causing extensive problems for septic systems.
Attorneys are currently investigating whether the manufacturers of these flushable wipes may be held responsible for misleading consumers into believing these wipes are flushable.
Tests Show Flushable Wipes Do Not Break Up in Water
ConsumerReports.org tested four brands of flushable wipes – Kleenex Cottonelle, Charmin, Scott, and Equate – to see if they broke up in water and were sewer and septic safe, like their labels stated. When the wipes were immersed in water for 10 minutes, they showed no signs of dissolution. Traditional toilet paper, which was put through the same test, broke up and dissolved within seconds.
In another test, wastewater treatment employees in Vancouver, Washington dyed Kirkland flushable wipes bright colors and let them flow through the city’s sewage system for about one mile. When they checked the sewage route further down the line, the brightly-dyed wipes had not disintegrated and were blocking sewage pumps.
Flushable Wipes Cost Property Owners Hundreds in Sewage Services
Consumers have reported many issues with their plumbing systems after using flushable wipes, including low water pressure, high utility rates, clogged pipes, septic backups and septic system failure. According to these complaints, property owners have spent between $190 and $400 for plumbing services to remove the wipes from their pipes. One homeowner claimed that he spent more than $2,000 replacing 20 feet of piping that had been clogged by the flushable wipes.
Although most consumers claim they used the wipes sparingly and over the course of several months before noticing any plumbing problems, some reported clogged pipes after using just one “flushable” wipe.
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