In a surprising turn of events, a mother has taken legal action against a toy company after her daughter stumbled upon an adult website through an unexpected source.
The issue arose when the daughter of Holly Ricketson from South Carolina accessed a pornographic website via a link printed on the packaging of a Wicked doll. The dolls are modeled after characters portrayed by British actress Cynthia Erivo and American singer Ariana Grande in a film adaptation of the popular musical. Instead of pointing to a promotional website for the movie, the packaging directed users to a site sharing the same name but with adult content.
This error was discovered last month, leading to a recall of the dolls on November 11. However, Ricketson has now filed a class action lawsuit in Los Angeles federal court. Court papers detail how Ricketson presented the doll to her daughter, only to be shocked when her child showed her explicit images from the unintended website. The pair reportedly experienced significant emotional distress due to the incident.
Ricketson asserts that she would not have purchased the doll had she known of the error, further alleging that Mattel, the toy company behind the dolls, failed to offer a refund despite recalling the faulty products. The legal claim describes the mistake as an ‘inexcusable error,’ and seeks at least $5 million in damages for all U.S. buyers who received dolls with the erroneous packaging.
Mattel, headquartered in California, has chosen not to comment on the ongoing lawsuit. However, the company previously expressed regret about the misprint, acknowledging it as inappropriate for children. Initially intended to steer consumers towards WickedMovie.com, the mistake clearly deviated from their plans.
In response to the issue, Mattel has resumed sales of Wicked dolls, now adorned with corrected packaging, in stores and online. Nevertheless, the lawsuit accuses the company of negligence, selling products unfit for their intended use, and infringing upon California’s consumer protection laws.
This legal dispute underscores the unexpected challenges that can arise in product distribution and the importance of meticulous oversight in branding and packaging.
Source: News.sky
