A Lawsuit Against a Company Attacking Its Customers For Using Costco Coconut Oil
The Costco Coconut Oil lawsuit is currently making headlines all over the United States and the globe. A former top salesman for Costco claimed that the company’s hydrogenated coconut oil was bad for your health and he initiated a class action suit against the company stating their products caused him chronic health issues. The suit was eventually thrown out and Costco paid him over seven million dollars.
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This incident is not isolated. It is happening more often in America.
According to the US Food and Drug Administration, sales of hydrogenated oils are now increasing at twice the rate of other vegetable oils. This means more money for food processors and restaurants but it also means more people are filing lawsuits.
The problem lies with the way these lawsuits are being handled by the defendant’s insurance companies and under what circumstances they will cover the expense of legal counsel.
Insurance companies will only pay for medical bills, which occur as a direct result of negligence on the part of the company. This means that if a customer who buys a product from Costco develops stomach cancer as a result of consuming Costco coconut oil, Costco can simply pass the cost along to the customer’s insurers. Not a problem! They have no obligation to disclose this information to anyone.
What’s happening is that many cases filed by individual plaintiffs are being settled out of court for pennies on the dollar.
There is an estimated five to six thousand dollar settlement available to victims, and many of these cases have been bottled up for months before being submitted to court. This is why the cost of defending in a lawsuit can sometimes be less than the cost of feeding an entire family for a month.
It is clear that the cost of defending in a Costco coconut oil lawsuit can add up very quickly.
Especially considering that many plaintiffs simply do not have the funds available to invest in a lengthy legal battle. The fact that the company targets its customers on the basis of the very common-place basis of the trans-fats that are present in the coconut oil, it’s clear that Costco is taking a personal stance when it comes to this particular lawsuit.
Does this mean that you shouldn’t contact your own insurance company concerning any claims against Costco?
Of course not! We all know that companies have liability insurance, and they have every right to dispute any claims that result from injury or illness sustained while using their product. But let’s face it, if the cost of a lawsuit resulting in damages is much less than the cost of feeding and caring for a family of four, isn’t it worth it to pursue the case? It certainly seems like it would to me.
