SAN DIEGO (CBS 8) - Infomercials for the popular WEN hair products are enticing, using A-listers from Alyssa Milano to Brooke Shields and Holly Robinson-Peete.
Los Angeles celebrity hair stylist Chaz Dean is WEN’s creator, his ad's suggest you'll see an instant difference.
"Try WEN just one-time, and you will have the healthiest, shiniest, most beautiful hair you've had in your life," Dean says in commercials.
But that wasn't the case for countless women across the country. Many have reported balding and scalp damage.
More than 200 women have joined a class action lawsuit against WEN filed in California for:
- Breach of warranty
- Violation of California false advertising law
- Negligence- failure to warn
Attorney for WEN, Joe Hixson says not so fast. In a statement, he says:
"There is no scientific evidence whatsoever to support any claim that our hair care products caused anyone to lose their hair. There are many reasons why individuals may lose their hair, all unrelated to WEN hair care products. We will vigorously contest the allegations made against our products."
WEN had more than ten-million products shipped since 2008. It is a cleansing conditioner that doesn't lather, and the products tout being a full-service treatment, all-in-1, transforming dry, frizzy and faded hair to shiny and moisturized locks.
Still according to the suit, the plaintiffs seek compensation for "misrepresentations and severe injuries to their hair and scalp, citing "one or more of the products' active ingredients act as a caustic agent causing a damaging chemical reaction."
Records show the lawsuit is brought by more than 100 plaintiffs, in which over $75,000 is at issue per person and more than $5-million as a group.
WEN attorneys say the claims are just speculation. The lawsuit was first filed in April, and more women have come forward in the suit since.
The case is now in arbitration, and the products are still being sold.