Pental fined $700,000 for misleading ‘flushable’ wipes
Sydney Water estimates about 500 tonnes of wet wipes are removed from the water network every year. Photo: Sydney Water
Australian company Pental has been ordered by the Federal Court to pay $700,000 for misleading its customers into thinking that its toilet and bathroom cleaning wipes were flushable.
The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) said Pental’s packaging and promotions for its White King wipes claimed that they were made from specially designed material that would disintegrate like toilet paper when flushed.
The company also boasted that users could “simply wipe over the hard surface of the toilet … and just flush away”.
The ACCC began proceedings in the Federal Court in December 2016, after a complaint by consumer advocate group Choice.
Pental co-operated with the ACCC by admitting these claims were wrong.
Pental has been fined by the Federal Court for making false and misleading representations about its bathroom cleaning wipes. Photo: ACCC
ACCC commissioner Sarah Court welcomed the outcome and said businesses would face “serious consequences” for misleading consumers about their products.
“These White King wipes can’t be flushed down the toilet, and Australian wastewater authorities face significant problems if they are [flushed] because they can cause blockages in household and municipal sewerage systems,” she said.
Sydney Water spokesman Jackson Vernon also welcomed the $700,000 fine, saying blockages caused by bathroom products cost millions of dollars each year to fix.
“We estimate that more than 500 tonnes of wet wipes are removed from our network every year,” he said.
Sydney Water is calling on companies to include “do not flush” messages on the packaging of bathroom products.
“In the meantime, remember the three P’s,” Mr Vernon said.
“The only things that you should flush down your toilet are pee, poo and [toilet] paper.”
The ACCC also has initiated separate court proceedings against Kimberley-Clark Australia in relation to similar ‘flushable’ wipe products that were marketed and supplied in Australia between 2013 and 2016.
In 2015, Choice awarded a “Shonky Award” to Kimberley-Clark’s Kleenex Cottonelle Flushable Cleansing Cloths for Kids.
