Dive Brief:

• The Federal Trade Commission is sending $140,000 in refunds to more than 4,000 consumers deceived by false “Made in USA” claims from three New England clothing manufacturers.
• The FTC took action against the companies — Chaucer Accessories, Bates Accessories and Bates Retail Group — and their collective owner, Thomas Bates, in June 2023, for falsely marketing products such as bags, belts, wallets and shoes as U.S.-made, despite using imported goods or components. 
• The complaint requires the accessories makers to pay more than $191,000 to the FTC and adhere to strict guidelines on “Made-in-USA” claims, including more transparency around a product’s manufacturing and assembly.

Dive Insight:

FTC investigators found that the brands, based in New Hampshire and Massachusetts, made deceptive claims about where their products were made. A number of the accessories were wholly imported or used significant imported components from countries like Taiwan, according to the complaint.

The three jointly-owned companies share manufacturing operations in Haverhill, Massachusetts, according to their websites. Chaucer Accessories, Bates Accessories and Bates Retail Group did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The FTC started cracking down on “Made in USA” labels after it fined Williams Sonoma nearly $3.2 million in 2020, the largest penalty amount in the history of its kind. The company was cited for falsely labeling imported goods as U.S.-made, including product lines under its Goldtouch, Rejuvenation, Pottery Barn Teen and Pottery Barn Kids.

In August 2021, the agency strengthened its enforcement for “Made in USA” labeling rules, adding financial penalties against companies for deceptive country of origin claims. The rule states that “all or virtually all” the product must be made in the U.S., such as processing and labor. 

“For many consumers, a Made in USA claim can be the deciding factor in choosing among competing products. So when a company says ‘Made in USA’ or uses similar phrases, it must deliver on that promise,” said then-Senior Attorney with the FTC Lesley Fair in a blog post about the case.

Other household brands are also facing false “Made in USA” claim fines. The FTC sent $88,000 in refunds to more than 10,000 Pyrex customers who bought measuring cups that manufacturer Instant Brands falsely claimed were “Made in USA.” 

As of April, the FTC has issued $15,754,043 worth of judgments for “Made in USA” in 11 different cases since 2021, when the law was finalized.

The FTC is issuing the refunds to consumers by check and Paypal payments, which should be sent 90 days from when they receive them, according to the Nov. 20 FTC post.