SEATTLE (AP) - Washington state Attorney General Bob Ferguson has filed a consumer protection lawsuit against vaping giant Juul Labs, saying the country’s largest e-cigarette company targets underage consumers.
Juul intentionally used young models, bright colors and candy-flavored vaping juice to lure in young users, Ferguson alleges in the suit filed Wednesday in King County Superior Court. The company deceived consumers in general about the addictiveness of its vape products, failing for years to disclose the presence of nicotine, according to the lawsuit.
“JUUL’s conduct reversed decades of progress fighting nicotine addiction, and they must be held accountable,” Ferguson said at a news briefing on Zoom.
The percentage of vaping teens in Washington rose from 13% in 2016 to more than 20% by 2018, according to Ferguson’s office.
Juul stopped selling fruit and dessert flavors in October 2019, The Seattle Times reported.
Ferguson said a 2018 study of Juul’s Twitter audience showed that 80% of its followers were between 13 and 20 years old and that the company knew but did not address it.
“We will continue to reset the vapor category in the U.S. and seek to earn the trust of society by working cooperatively with attorneys general, legislators, regulators, public health officials, and other stakeholders to combat underage use and transition adult smokers from combustible cigarettes, Juul spokesperson Austin Finan said in an email. “We will respond to the allegations in the complaint through the appropriate legal channels.”
Ferguson’s lawsuit is the latest legal trouble for the company, and for the vaping industry more generally.
Last month, Ferguson sued E-Juice Vapors for selling its products without strong age verification and because that company never received a license from the state to deliver vapor products into Washington.
Vaping in general has come under scrutiny in the past couple of years as a spate of lung illnesses and deaths seem to be connected to inhalation of e-cigarette ingredients.
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