Class Action Claims CVS Health Clear Zinc Sunscreens Falsely Advertised

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A proposed class action alleges Fruit of the Earth and CVS have falsely and misleadingly labeled certain sunscreens to the detriment of unsuspecting consumers.

The 42-page complaint alleges the defendants have misled consumers into believing CVS Health-brand Clear Zinc Sun Lotion and Clear Zinc Lotion contain only zinc oxide as an active mineral ingredient. In truth, the products, contrary to their labeling and unbeknownst to buyers, contain nearly the same amount of active chemical ingredients, namely octocrylene, as active mineral ingredients, the case claims. 

Per the complaint, the defendants have “reaped many millions of dollars” by failing to disclose that the sunscreens, more specifically, contain five percent zinc mineral active ingredients and four percent chemical active ingredients. The suit, filed by a San Diego consumer, claims Fruit of the Earth and CVS Pharmacy “sought to take advantage of consumers’ desire for mineral sunscreens while reaping the financial benefits of using less desirable and less costly chemical active ingredients in the Products.” 

“Defendants have done so at the expense of unwitting consumers,” the case alleges, “as well as Defendants’ lawfully acting competitors, over whom Defendants maintain an unfair competitive advantage.”

In recent years, consumers have become increasingly drawn to mineral-based sunscreens, in part because chemical-based products have been shown to have adverse health effects, including the entrance of chemical ingredients into a consumer’s skin and bloodstream, the suit explains. Consumers who buy mineral-based sunscreen products do so based on the reasonable belief that the products contain no chemical active ingredients, such as octocrylene, and contain only ingredients such as zinc oxide or titanium oxide, per the case. 

Notably, the FDA determined in 2019 that there existed insufficient data to determine that sunscreen ingredients such as octisalate, octocrylene and octinoxate could be given the Generally Recognized As Safe and Effective (GRASE) determination, the suit relays. 

The defendants, in “eye-catching large font,” have falsely and misleading advertised the CVS Health-brand “clear zinc” sunscreens in a manner that leads reasonable consumers to believe the products contain no active chemical ingredients, the lawsuit alleges. According to the suit, this belief is reinforced by the fact that nearly every sunscreen on the market advertised as a “zinc” sunscreen contains only zinc as an active mineral ingredient. 

In truth, the defendants’ products, unlike “true zinc sunscreens,” contain four percent octocrylene, the case says, alleging the companies’ use of “cheaper chemical active ingredients” has allowed them to reduce manufacturing costs and increase profits.

The lawsuit looks to represent all U.S. residents who, within the applicable statute of limitations period, bought any of the above-described CVS sunscreen products. The case also looks to cover a “subclass” consisting of California residents who fit the same criteria. 

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