Boston, MA: A consumer fraud class-action lawsuit has been filed against Vibram USA Inc and Vibram FiveFingers LLC, alleging the company used deceptive statements about the health benefits of barefoot running.
Filed on behalf of Florida resident Valerie Bezdek, the lawsuit claims that 1) health benefits claims Vibram FiveFingers has used to promote the shoes are deceptive; 2) that FiveFingers may increase injury risk as compared to running in conventional running shoes, and even when compared to running barefoot; 3) that there are no well-designed scientific studies that support FiveFingers claims.
"Given that Defendant's advertising and marketing equates barefoot running with running in FiveFingers, Defendant's uniform deceptive statements about barefoot running are also deceptive statements about Five Fingers,"the lawsuit claims.
The lawsuit also states that sales of the Vibram FiveFingers shoes have grown an average of 300 percent a year for the last five years and approached $70 million in 2011.
