Nurofen Class Action: Admits to Deceptive and Misleading Conduct
Tuesday 19 April 2016 @ 9.49 a.m. | Trade & Commerce
It has been reported that millions of Australians may be able to claim a refund on some Nurofen painkiller products if a class action against the drug's makers is successful.
Background
In December 2015, the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) successfully prosecuted Reckitt Benkiser (RB) over four products:
- Nurofen Migraine Pain;
- Nurofen Tension Headache;
- Nurofen Period Pain; and
- Nurofen Back Pain.
Each product claimed to target specific pain, when in fact it was found that they all contained the same amount of the same active ingredient, ibuprofen lysine 342mg.
The ACCC had conducted price sampling, which indicated the products were being sold at retail prices materially higher than other comparable pain relievers, and the ACCC was concerned consumers may have purchased the higher priced products in the mistaken belief that they targeted the specific type of pain mentioned on the packaging and the website.
The Federal Court found that RB made misleading representations on the packaging of each of the products and also on its website at www.nurofen.com.au that each product was formulated to treat a particular type of pain and solely or specifically treated that particular type of pain.
Admission from Reckitt Benckister
Lawyers for the company admitted in court that the company had engaged in "deceptive and misleading" behaviour by advertising that four products could treat specific types of pain. The company now faces a multi-million dollar payout.
Peter Moore, one of the named plaintiffs in the class action against the British pharmaceutical giant, said he had previously used Nurofen for a number of issues:
"I had a back operation in 1992 that went wrong and last year [2015] my back went out twice ... and I was crawling around the floor basically and instead of taking Panadeine Forte all the time, I went and got Nurofen, which says for back pain, and it didn't do anything for my back."
Mr Moore said he had suffered from HIV for over two decades and to deal with one of the symptoms he tried using Nurofen Migraine Pain. He said they were not effective.
The product in question, Nurofen Back Pain, had been marketed as providing "targeted relief".
Penalties and Costs
RB was also ordered to pay the ACCC’s costs with penalties are yet to be decided. The ACCC Chairman issued a media release saying:
“Truth in advertising and consumer issues in the health and medical sectors are priority areas for the ACCC, to ensure that consumers are given accurate information when making their purchasing decisions."
RB ultimately consented to Court Orders, including orders that RB ceased any further shipment, distribution and sale of the products packaged in the Nurofen Specific Pain range packaging, removed the products from sale and display in all retail outlets within three months, and published notice of its corrective action on its website and in newspapers.
The Class Action
As a result of the Federal Court action, Bannister Law is currently running a class action against Reckitt Benckiser.
According to their website, the claim is based upon:
"Our claim is for a full refund of the Nurofen specific pain product that the consumer purchased for their particular pain. We believe that the consumer would not have purchased the product if they had known that it was not more effective on targeting pain than any of the other Nurofen Specific Pain products."
If instructed to commence proceedings, Bannister Law will request that the court order a proportion of the compensation be paid to affected consumers and a proportion be payable to an appropriate charity, subject to the approval of the court.
TimeBase is an independent, privately owned Australian legal publisher specialising in the online delivery of accurate, comprehensive and innovative legislation research tools including LawOne and unique Point-in-Time Products.
Sources:
Nurofen Specific Pain claims: Federal Court finds misleading conduct - Meridian Lawyers
Nurofen maker admits to court it engaged in 'deceptive and misleading' behaviour –
abc.net.au
