Just for Men Lawsuits Filed Over Risks Associated with Hair and Beard Dye

A number of consumer lawsuits have been recently filed over the risks of “Just for Men” hair and beard dye, alleging that the popular products may cause severe chemical burns and skin reactions.

At least two new class action lawsuits were filed last week against Combe, Inc., the manufacturer of “Just for Men”. One complaint (PDF) was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Illinois on February 16, and another similar complaint (PDF) was filed in the Eastern District of Missouri on February 17.

“Just For Men” is a popular hair and beard dye marketed for removal of grey hair among men. However, concerns have emerged over the past year about a growing number of reports involving problems with Just for Men, indicating that the hair and beard dyes have caused burns, scarring, allergic reactions, anaphylactic shock, skin depigmentation and other injuries.

Both recently filed cases seek class action status for men who purchased the hair or beard dye, indicating that Combe knew or should have known about the potential Just for Men risks, yet failed to provide critical safety information to induce consumers to purchase and use the product.

The Illinois lawsuit was filed by Garnett Davis, who purchased Just For Men on numerous occasions before suffering a severe reaction in December 2014. According to the complaint, Davis experienced redness, irritation, sores, blisters and burning and had to obtain medical attention.

The Missouri lawsuit was filed by Bryon Belton and Randall Collins, seeking to represent everyone in that state who brought the hair dye as well. Neither man reports suffering physical injury due to a Just For Men skin reaction.

“Defendants actively marketed Just For Men to consumers knowing that it would cause serious and severe reactions to consumers and failed to warn or disclose this fact to consumers and the public in general,” the Davis lawsuit states. “Defendants have a duty to monitor the safety of their products and it is reasonable for them to conduct multiple clinical trials and/or studies related to the safety of their Just For Men products. However, Defendants have failed to do so. Defendants knew or should have known of the high number of adverse reactions and injuries related to their Just For Men products from a multitude of sources, including but not limited to their internal claims process, making their failure to conduct any studies or clinical trials particularly egregious.”

Last month, another “Just for Men” class action lawsuit was filed against Combe, indicating that an active ingredient in the products, p_Phenylenediamine (PPD), is know to cause severe skin reactions, particularly among African-American men and those with darker hair colors.

Just For Men Risks

The concerns about reports of Just for Men allergic reactions gained nationwide attention following a 2012 report by ConsumerAffairs.com, which noted that it was receiving a number of new complaints involving skin irritation, itching, blisters and chemical burns following Just for Men application.

Consumer Affairs has received more than 400 reports of burns or allergic reactions to “Just for Men” since the group first warned about the risk of allergic reactions in 2012.

Many of the men report using Just for Men dye for years without any issues, which some some suggest may raise questions about whether the manufacturer’s suggestion that users do a “patch test” on a small part of the body may be useless.

Additional Just For Men lawsuits are likely to be filed in the coming months, as a number of individuals throughout the U.S. have already contacted lawyers after suffering injuries that were reportedly caused by the hair and beard dye.