Kiwipure charged over claims about its water filters

Kiwipure charged over claims about its water filters

Kiwipure Limited has pleaded not guilty to eight charges laid by the Commission alleging it made unsubstantiated claims about the benefits and ability of its water filters to soften water.

Charges were filed in Auckland District Court under the Fair Trading Act. By law, a business must have reasonable grounds for making a claim at the time it is made.

The charges relate to claims Kiwipure made between 10 February 2015 and 31 May 2018 on its website, and also in promotional materials and to customers.

The Commission charges allege that Kiwipure made unsubstantiated claims about:
• The ability of its water filter systems to soften water.
• The benefits that consumers could expect of soft water after using the water filters, such as ‘no scum build up’, ‘use less washing powder’ and ‘no scale build-up in hot water systems and pipes saves electricity and maintenance.’
• The water filters’ ability to reduce skin conditions, such as eczema and dermatitis.
As this matter is before the Court, the Commission cannot comment further at this time.

Background

Watch our video- If you can’t back it up, don’t say it
Consumers need to be able to rely on the accuracy of claims. It is illegal for a trader to make a claim about a good or service without reasonable grounds for doing so. You can watch our video If you can’t back it up, don’t say it and see more about unsubstantiated representations here.
Hard water versus soft water
Hard water is the term used to describe water containing high levels of minerals. When water contains high levels of minerals, it tends to deposit these minerals onto surfaces - often referred to as “scale”. Hard water can also make soap form a scum on surfaces. Conventional methods of treating hard water (reverse osmosis and ion exchange) involve removing the minerals from water which cause it to be hard. The result is softer water and reduced scale or scum build up.
Company details
Kiwipure was incorporated in New Zealand in 2006. It distributes household water filtration systems thatutilise, amongst other things, magnets. In 2011 it began supplying the water filter that sought to utilise magnetic fields to alter the water properties. Since that time it has directly retailed the water filter to consumers, predominantly through its website, as well as selling wholesale.

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