Australia pulls Nurofen products over ‘misleading claims’

An Australian court has ordered products in the Nurofen pain relief range off the shelves, saying the UK-based manufacturer misled consumers.

The court said products marketed to treat specific pains, such as migraines, were identical to one another.

Research also found the products were sold for almost double the price of Nurofen’s standard product.

Manufacturer Reckitt Benckiser said the case related only to Australia.

It said the ruling would not be applicable in other countries, including the UK.

“As such all Nurofen products remain available and there will be no changes to packaging,” they said.

The UK consumer association Which? said it was not an issue it was planning to investigate.

Reckitt Benckiser said it would comply with the Australian court order and that it “did not set out to mislead consumers”.
Active ingredient

The products affected by the order include Nurofen Back Pain, Nurofen Period Pain, Nurofen Migraine Pain and Nurofen Tension Headache.

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) watchdog had brought the matter to court earlier this year.

The ACCC said the court had found that the firm had “engaged in misleading conduct in contravention of the Australian consumer law by representing that its Nurofen Specific Pain products were each formulated to treat a specific type of pain, when the products are identical”.

Each product contained the same active ingredient, ibuprofen lysine 342mg.

And the products were found to be “no more effective at treating the type of pain described on its packaging than any of the other Nurofen specific pain products”.

The Federal Court of Australia said the products must be taken off Australian shelves within three months.

The retail price for each of the pain-specific products was also found to be “significantly higher than that of other comparable analgesic products which also act as general pain relievers,” the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) said.

Reckitt Benckiser is a British-based consumer goods manufacturer and makes products including Nurofen, Dettol and Harpic, among others.

It has been ordered to publish correction notices in newspapers and on its website and to pay the ACCC’s court costs.