Skip to footer

FiveFinger shoes owner? Come get your refund.

FiveFingers shoes maker Vibram just settled a multi-million dollar class action lawsuit alleging that it deliberately misled customers over the health benefits of 'barefoot' running shoes. If you have a pair of Vibram FiveFingers shoes, you may be entitled to a refund. 

  • By Jessica Hulett Guest blogger

If you've been skeptical about the health benefits of the barefoot running trend, prepare to be vindicated… or even compensated. Vibram USA, the company that makes the FiveFingers running shoe with individual toes, just settled a multi-million dollar class-action lawsuit. If you own a pair, you may be entitled to some cash.

Lawsuit Alleges Vibram Touted Health Benefits So It Could Charge More

In March 2012, Florida resident Valerie Bezdek filed the suit, stating that Vibram's claims that the shoes reduced the risk of foot injury and strengthened foot and leg muscles amounted to false advertising.

Further, she alleged that Vibram profited by deliberately misleading customers about the health benefits of the shoes, inciting them to pay more for the product — which can cost as much as $150 per pair — than they would have for other brands.

The Settlement, and How to File a Claim for a Refund

The terms of the settlement are twofold. First, Vibram has to pay out $3.75 million to customers who purchased Vibram FiveFingers after March 21, 2009. These customers will have to file a claim to receive the refund, and can submit for up to two pairs of shoes. The max refund is $94, though most claimants can expect to receive $20 to $50 per pair.

The second part of the settlement prohibits Vibram from making any claims about the health benefits of its footwear without scientific evidence to back them up. They're also required to notify the public about the lawsuit through a dedicated website and banner ads. Information on filing a claim will be available at http://www.fivefingerssettlement.com/ once the site is live.

One thing Vibram doesn't have to do, however, is admit that they misled customers. In fact, the court brief reads, "Vibram expressly denied and continues to deny any wrongdoing alleged in the Actions, and neither admits nor concedes any actual or potential fault, wrongdoing or liability."

Was Vibram at Fault?

Vibram FiveFingers running shoes have serious devotees, and anecdotal evidence suggests that many wearers claim the shoes do have benefits over traditional running shoes. (We even gave them a positive review on this site in 2011.)

The science is fuzzy, though. Studies done in the past year found that minimalist shoes like FiveFingers might offer no benefit at all, or do more harm than good. This contradicts earlier studies that found that barefoot running is beneficial, but only if you do it properly. The studies' sample sizes were too small to definitively end the debate, and likely, for Vibram to win in court.

A look back at similar class action lawsuits against footwear brands suggests that in cases like these, the odds are not often in the company's favor. In 2011, Reebok International had to pay $25 million to customers who purchased EasyTone and RunTone Shoes, believing they provided tone and strength to leg and buttock muscles. Skechers USA got hit even harder in 2012, having to fork over $40 million for their advertising of Shape-ups, which contained claims of more weight loss and better cardiovascular health than other brands. And FitFlop USA recently settled for $1.325 million over claims that its products improved posture, increased muscle toning, and reduced joint strain in wearers.

Do you think Vibram should have to pay up, readers? And how much responsibility do brands have to their consumers when it comes to truth in advertising? 

Jessica Hulett is a contributor to Dealnews.com, where this article first appeared: http://dealnews.com/features/Do-You-Own-Vibram-Five-Finger-Shoes-You-May-Be-Entitled-to-a-Refund/1047498.html

You've read  of  free articles. Subscribe to continue.
Real news can be honest, hopeful, credible, constructive.
What is the Monitor difference? Tackling the tough headlines – with humanity. Listening to sources – with respect. Seeing the story that others are missing by reporting what so often gets overlooked: the values that connect us. That’s Monitor reporting – news that changes how you see the world.
editor@csmonitor.com
Subscribe
Mark Sappenfield
Editor

Dear Reader,

About a year ago, I happened upon this statement about the Monitor in the Harvard Business Review – under the charming heading of “do things that don’t interest you”:

“Many things that end up” being meaningful, writes social scientist Joseph Grenny, “have come from conference workshops, articles, or online videos that began as a chore and ended with an insight. My work in Kenya, for example, was heavily influenced by a Christian Science Monitor article I had forced myself to read 10 years earlier. Sometimes, we call things ‘boring’ simply because they lie outside the box we are currently in.”

If you were to come up with a punchline to a joke about the Monitor, that would probably be it. We’re seen as being global, fair, insightful, and perhaps a bit too earnest. We’re the bran muffin of journalism.

But you know what? We change lives. And I’m going to argue that we change lives precisely because we force open that too-small box that most human beings think they live in.

The Monitor is a peculiar little publication that’s hard for the world to figure out. We’re run by a church, but we’re not only for church members and we’re not about converting people. We’re known as being fair even as the world becomes as polarized as at any time since the newspaper’s founding in 1908.

We have a mission beyond circulation, we want to bridge divides. We’re about kicking down the door of thought everywhere and saying, “You are bigger and more capable than you realize. And we can prove it.”

If you’re looking for bran muffin journalism, you can subscribe to the Monitor for $15. You’ll get the Monitor Weekly magazine, the Monitor Daily email, and unlimited access to CSMonitor.com.

Subscribe to insightful journalism

QR Code to FiveFinger shoes owner? Come get your refund.
Read this article in
https://www.csmonitor.com/Business/Saving-Money/2014/0512/FiveFinger-shoes-owner-Come-get-your-refund
QR Code to Subscription page
Start your subscription today
https://www.csmonitor.com/subscribe