On October 20, 2017, two dissatisfied TJ Maxx customers filed an amended and expanded class action complaint in Massachusetts federal court accusing the retailer’s parent company, TJX Companies Inc. (“TJX”), and textile manufacturers, AQ Textiles LLC and Creative Textile Mills Pvt. Ltd., of exaggerating the thread count of bedding and linen products in order to increase profits.
Named plaintiffs Elizabeth Adam and Rebecca Foley originally filed the suit in July of 2017. Plaintiffs accused the TJX—which owns TJ Maxx in addition to Home Goods, Marshalls and Sierra Trading Post—and the two textile manufacturers of violating the Magnuson Moss Warranty Act, as well as asserted claims for breach of implied warranty, breach of express warranty, negligence, fraud and negligent misrepresentation under Massachusetts law. The recently amended complaint retained all original claims, plus added a claim for violation of the Massachusetts Consumer Protection Act.
Essentially, the plaintiffs are arguing that the defendants have been deviating from the industry standard for establishing product’s thread count so that they can charge consumers more. The National Textiles Association and the American Textile Manufacturer’s Institute have established that the standard for determining thread count is to count the number of threads both horizontally and vertically and to tally each yarn as one thread, regardless if the fabric is single-ply or multi-ply. However, the defendants have been establishing thread count by counting plied yarns individually which doubles, and in some cases triples, the thread count on a product.
In the complaint, the plaintiffs argue that the defendants were aware that consumers typically equate a product’s thread count to its quality and are willing to pay higher prices for higher thread count products. The suit seeks to represent all consumers across the country that have purchased bedding or linens manufactured by AQ Textiles or Creative Textile Mills at a TJX store.
The case is: Adam et al v. The TJX Companies Inc. et al, Case No.: 1:17-cv-11260, in the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts.
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