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Whether we’re talking about popularity or notoriety, Zinus takes the lead. One of the most widely sold cheap mattresses on Amazon (and many other retailers) is also one of the first brands to be sued for harm caused by the fire-resistant material built inside. As people keep buying Zinus for its high ratings, there’s a growing number of those who report horrendous experiences with their mattresses. In this article, we’ll do a deep dive on the Zinus mattress lawsuit and see if we can find information about the outcome.
Is there a Zinus mattress lawsuit?
Yes, there is. A California woman, Vanessa Gutierrez, is leading a class-action lawsuit against mattress-in-a-box company Zinus, specifically over their Green Tea Mattress.
She represents as many as 2,000 Americans whose health was compromised and whose homes and belongings were severely damaged as a result of Zinus mattress fiberglass exposure.
Vanessa claims that she never removed the outer cover and that fiberglass leaked nevertheless, causing redness, itchiness, and pain to her kids.
Prior to this, Zinus was also sued by Amanda Chandler and Robert Durham.
The mattress these people bought had a tag that said “62% Glass Fibers”, and it had a zipper. In no way were they warned that removing the outer cover would release a dust of fiberglass particles into the air and that it would pose a health hazard. The outer cover at the time didn’t have a tag that would warn them of the dangers of removal.
There are many similarities between their and Vanessa’s experience. They both spent over $20,000 on property damage and professional remediation services, and they both bought mattresses for their children.
Vanessa also had medical bills because she had to take her children to multiple medical appointments. As she said, “The baby got the worst of it. I thought she was overactive, but it was because she was feeling the burning … It looked like little paper cuts all over the back of her legs.”
The legal reasons for filing this lawsuit include:
- design defect
- fraudulent concealment
- gross negligence
- failure to warn
- unjust enrichment
- breach of implied warranty
The Zinus mattresses now come with locked zippers and an additional sewn-in label that informs customers not to remove the protective outer cover.
However, there still isn’t any extra information telling people what exactly they are getting into if they remove the cover.
In the FAQ section of the Zinus website, under the question “Can I wash my Zinus mattress cover?”, you’ll find a lot of vague words, none of which gives actual hazard information:
“Our mattresses are self-contained wonder delivery systems! Removing the mattress cover could jeopardize that system. The mattress cover isn’t washable, and removing it could inhibit the fire safety barrier, so please always leave the cover on.”
If you happen to go to their warranty policy page, you’ll finally be able to find one sentence that mentions fiberglass, and it’s in the part that explains how your warranty will be void if you remove the outer mattress cover:
“Removal of the cover will expose the protective fire barrier and may cause exposure to glass fiber.”
This image shows what the new Zinus memory foam mattress tag looks like. And below is a warning label from a fiberglass insulation product. It would be much more appropriate to place something like that on a mattress too, don’t you think?
Although the type of fiberglass used in textiles differs from the one used in insulation, we now know for a fact that fiberglass leaks cause a plethora of health problems, and all products that contain it need to have a visible warning label detailing all the hazards.
Why did Zinus put fiberglass in their mattresses?
Fiberglass is one of the flame-retardant options that are used in the mattress industry, and all companies are required by law to produce mattresses that are fireproof. Fiberglass is also less expensive than other fire-resistant materials.
Zinus is pretty sure they aren’t doing anything wrong because they make mattresses according to all laws and regulations. Unlike what happened other lawsuits, Zinus hasn’t been sued due to their business practices but rather because of the materials they use (similar to the Avocado mattress lawsuit).
Is it possible to file a claim against Zinus?
Yes, it is. You can contact The Environmental Litigation Group and find information on how to join the pending class action lawsuit. This lawsuit was filed against Zinus and its retailers nationwide (the latest update stating that the retailers were dropped out of the lawsuit), on behalf of these groups of people:
- consumers who bought the affected mattresses
- adults injured by fiberglass
- minors injured by fiberglass
- individuals who suffered personal property damage
- individuals who suffered real estate property damage.
Some law firms are collecting information on fiberglass harm and preparing lawsuits for other companies as well. Some of the names that are showing up are Vibe, Nectar, and Ashley. Purple was also sued regarding claims about a type of powder that was used in their mattresses (not fiberglass-related).
Are Zinus mattresses safe?
We can’t call them safe, despite the fact that they are made according to all federal standards and that fiberglass is not considered hazardous by the Consumer Product Safety Commission.
Still, if it leaks (and it can leak even if you didn’t remove the cover or tampered with it in any way), fiberglass can:
- cause itchy, red skin, rashes, and skin irritation
- cause coughing, wheezing, shortness of breath
- create breathing problems, aggravate existing asthma
- nose and throat soreness
- itchy and irritated eyes
- skin cuts
To make the matters worse, these aren’t the only issues with a toxic mattress. The people who are suing Zinus reported that glass fibers contaminated their entire home. They were breathing airborne dust full of tiny particles of fiberglass. Shards ended up in all of their clothes, blankets, carpets, in the HVAC system, and everywhere where you don’t want them to be!
Not all memory foam mattresses have fiberglass. You can still opt for safer mattresses without fiberglass, though they might not be as cheap. If you really want to know what your mattress is made of, you might want to try your hand at making a DIY mattress. After all, the fire-retardant law is only valid for manufacturers, not DIY-ers.
FAQs
No, they didn’t and they aren’t planning to. Fiberglass is not (yet) considered hazardous and Zinus is confident that they will win in this pending lawsuit. If fiberglass becomes recognized as a health hazard by authorities and if lawmakers legislate its use in a much better way than it is now, Zinus and all other mattress companies will have to take action and make their mattresses safer.
Since every Zinus mattress is made of foam, including the Green Tea memory foam mattress, they do contain harmful chemicals that get released into the air while we sleep. Zinus memory foam is CertiPUR-US certified, which means that their foam doesn’t off-gas too much. If Zinus used chemical flame retardants, their mattresses would be releasing more types of and a higher amount of toxic chemicals.
Zinus has a 10-year limited warranty that applies to all mattresses purchased as new from authorized retailers. Things that void the warranty include:
being the second owner
not having proof of purchase
removing mattress tags
altering the mattress
removing the outer mattress cover
The Zinus warranty covers defects in workmanship and materials and you need to register your mattress on their website.
Conclusion
Zinus makes some of the most popular mattresses on Amazon. You can also find them in Walmart, Target, or many other places. Thousands of people were harmed by their mattresses and a lot of these cases happened after people unknowingly removed the outer cover, but many witnessed fiberglass leaks without ever tampering with the mattress. There’s a class action lawsuit pending and although Zinus believes their company is in the right, the sad and often enraging stories of a growing number of people harmed might prove them wrong. People have had breathing difficulties and severe skin irritation, and many had to throw away much of their belongings.
Next step: Read our Nolah mattress review. If you want to avoid fiberglass exposure, it’s important to choose a high-quality brand. Nolah mattresses do NOT contain fiberglass layers and are completely safe to sleep on.
With over 5 years experience writing about sleep and mattresses, she's considered one of the go-to experts on the topic.
She likes cycling, nature, art, and languages. She pays special attention to providing you with accurate and useful information when it comes to your sleep quality.
After solving her personal sleep and tiredness problems, she is on to help others by sharing this invaluable information.
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