While a number of department stores have fallen in recent years, Macy's has stood strong. But although the retailer offers a wide variety of high-quality products, some shoppers are now claiming that certain items aren't all they're cracked up to be. Now, a class-action lawsuit against the retailer is seeking $10.5 million from the retailer over allegedly misleading claims. Read on to learn why Macy's is under fire over its sheets.
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A class action is seeking $10.5 million from Macy's.
iStockFrustrated shoppers are now seeking a major settlement with Macy's in a lawsuit over sheets, Top Class Actions reported. The buyers, led by plaintiff Sarah Hawes, filed a motion on March 24 to ask an Ohio federal judge to approve a $10.5 settlement with Macy's Inc. and Macy’s Stores West Inc.
If approved by the U.S. District Court for the South District of Ohio, this would end five years of litigation between the company and the plaintiffs, according to Top Class Actions. Hawes initially filed her lawsuit in 2017, claiming in the original document that Macy's repeatedly misrepresented and sold sheets and bedding products with "inflated thread counts."
Buyers claim the retailer falsely labeled sheets.
iStockThe crux of the class action is a claim from Hawes about sheets she bought from Macy's. According to the suit, she purchased a Somerset Collection brand queen-size sheet set from a Los Angeles location. Hawes said she paid $76.11 for the sheets, which were represented as "900 Thread Count" on the label.
"[But] the actual thread count of her sheets was much less," the suit states.
Using standards set by American Society for Testing and Materials, the lawsuit alleges that the actual thread count for the cotton-polyester bed sheets the plaintiff bought was less than 300. As a result, Hawes claims she was "deceived by the thread count representations" and led by Macy's into believing that she was paying more for sheets that "were of higher quality, softer and better for sleep than sheets with lower thread counts."
You could be entitled to money from Macy's if the settlement is approved.
ShutterstockThe retailer has long argued that each strand of polyester could be counted toward the final thread count of the sheets, dismissing Hawes' claims about misrepresentation, Top Class Actions explained. But the plaintiff and Macy's have finally reached a deal over the suit through a proposed $10.5 million settlement from the retailer, according to the outlet.
If this settlement is approved, many Macy's customers could be eligible for a payout. A federal judge in Ohio certified an entire group of buyers for the case in 2022, meaning that the settlement class now includes anyone in California who bought the cotton-polyester blend bedsheets from Macy's between Nov. 8, 2013, and March 24, 2023. These buyers would likely be entitled to receive $7.50 per purchase as part of the settlement agreement, Top Class Actions reported.
Best Life reached out to Macy's about the proposed settlement, and we will update this story with their response.
This isn't the only suit against the department store over sheets.
Shutterstock / Jonathan WeissThis doesn't appear to be an isolated issue. According to Top Class Actions, Macy's was hit with a similar but separate suit in 2020. This class action was filed by consumers Cassandra Chiaraluce and Jonathan Fontaine, who said they purchased different sheet sets from the retailer that were advertised with "800 Thread Count" and "1,200 Thread Count" labeling, respectively.
Like Hawes, the plaintiffs claim that Macy's and the manufacturers doubled or tripled the accurate thread count with the intent of misleading shoppers into believing they were buying sheets that were of higher quality than they really were.
