ERSP Recommends Suarez Discontinue Certain Claims for ‘EdenPURE’; Finds Advertiser Can Support ‘Made in America’ Claim

The Electronic Retailing Self-Regulation Program (ERSP) has recommended that Suarez Corporation Industries modify or discontinue certain claims for the EdenPURE, a portable heater. The marketer of the product voluntarily discontinued several claims that were the subject of the ERSP inquiry.

ERSP is an investigative unit of the advertising industry’s system of self-regulation and is administered by the Council of Better Business Bureaus. The marketer’s advertising came to ERSP’s attention through the Better Business Bureau of the Canton and West Virginia Regions.

ERSP reviewed print and online advertising for EdenPURE, and identified several claims for review, including:

• “…the new EdenPURE heats better, faster, saves more on heating bills, and runs almost silent.”
• “…made in the U.S.A. using Patent Pending exclusive duel heating technology. Our heaters are more efficient, more effective, and better built.”
• "Unlike other EdenPURE imitators, it will not reduce humidity or oxygen in the room. These imitators use ceramic plates instead of our patented copper. These inexpensive ceramic plates reduce humidity, dry out your sinuses, make you more susceptible to illness, and make your skin dry… Other heating sources heat rooms unevenly with most of the heat concentrated high in the room and to the center of the room. And, as you know, portable heaters only heat an area a few feet around the heater.”
• “A major cause of residential fires in the United States is portable heaters. Fire and Safety professional, Captain Mike Hornby ranks EdenPURE #1 for safety and reliability.”
• “…creates a very safe heat. Infrared is one of the safest forms of heat…”
• “Children and pets can come up to the EdenPURE cabinet and touch it and not be harmed.”

In response to ERSP’s initial inquiry, Suarez stated that some of the claims at issue in ERSP inquiry were no longer being used, but did not commit to permanently discontinuing the claims. The company further asserted that several of the claims at issue had been made by independent third-party dealers, outside the control of Suarez.

Following its review of the evidence in the record, ERSP determined that the advertiser could not support claims related to monthly savings, and recommended the company discontinue the claims in future advertising. ERSP recommended Suarez discontinue comparative safety claims and comparative superiority claims. Further, ERSP recommended the company discontinue express safety claims involving children in advertising for the EdenPURE.

Suarez contended that its “Made in USA” claim was truthful and accurate and it provided ERSP with documentation detailing the percentage of imported and domestic parts that comprise the EdenPURE heater. ERSP determined the marketer provided a reasonable basis for this claim.

The company, in its marketer’s statement, said, “We intend to adhere to ERSP recommendations. It is our goal to be as clear and honest with consumers as possible. We take great pride in not only the jobs our company has created locally, but in the quality of our product and in the satisfaction we strive to offer consumers.”