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Skechers Product Liability Claims Pile Up Before Class Action Deadline

Last year, Skechers agreed to set up a $40 million product liability fund to settle the claims in a class-action lawsuit filed by consumers who suffered ankle injuries caused by using the company’s Shape-ups.

Complaints had been filed nationwide about the toning shoes causing ankle fractures after the rocker bottom on the shoes rolled in or forward during daily use. The cases were all consolidated into an MDL (multi-district litigation) in the Louisville Division of the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Kentucky.

The court found Skechers guilty of misleading marketing practices. Skechers had overstated the health benefits and did not warn consumers about the risks associated with use of shoes with unstable rocker bottoms.

Skechers agreed to set up a $40 million fund, which will pay out refunds of between $20 to $80 for Shape-ups, Tone-ups, Resistance Runners and padded sole shoes purchased between Aug 1, 2008 and Aug 13, 2012.

As the April 18 deadline for filing claims under the settlement agreement to receive refunds approaches, claims seeking additional damages above and beyond refunds are piling up.  

A woman in Mobile, Alabama has filed a product liability lawsuit alleging that the Shape-ups she purchased caused her to fall down, leading to a torn tendon in her right ankle. She had to undergo surgery and subsequent physiotherapy sessions for months.

Another complaint filed by a woman from Surprise, Arizona claims an ankle fracture that required surgery took months to heal and caused her to lose her job. Many other complaints say that the surgery for ankle injuries required insertion of screws and plates.

Class action members have the choice of accepting their share of the settlement amount, or refusing it and continuing to pursue their lawsuit as an individual case afterwards.