Tom’s Toothpaste Lawsuit: Who Qualifies, Payouts, and Deadlines

If you bought Tom’s of Maine toothpaste in the United States between November 21, 2020 and March 6, 2026, you can file a claim in the Tom’s of Maine toothpaste lawsuit settlement. The $2.9 million deal resolves allegations that the toothpaste was made under unsanitary conditions at the company’s Sanford, Maine plant. Claims are due July 6, 2026, and you don’t need a receipt to file one.¹ToothpasteSettlement.com. Rabinowitz et al. v. Colgate-Palmolive Company et al. – Claim Login

Who Can File

The settlement class covers anyone in the United States who bought one or more Tom’s of Maine toothpaste products for personal use (not resale) between November 21, 2020 and March 6, 2026.²GovInfo. Rabinowitz et al. v. Colgate-Palmolive Company et al. – Preliminary Approval Order It applies to all Tom’s of Maine toothpaste products manufactured at the Sanford, Maine facility.³PR Newswire. Tom’s of Maine Toothpaste Settlement Notice

Only one claim per household is allowed.

How to File a Claim

You have two ways to file:

• Online at ToothpasteSettlement.com.
• By paper form, downloaded from the settlement website or requested by calling 1-877-315-6779 or emailing info@ToothpasteSettlement.com. Mailed forms must be postmarked by the deadline.¹ToothpasteSettlement.com. Rabinowitz et al. v. Colgate-Palmolive Company et al. – Claim Login

The settlement administrator is Epiq. You can reach the administrator through the mailing address on the claim form or through the chat tool on the settlement website.¹ToothpasteSettlement.com. Rabinowitz et al. v. Colgate-Palmolive Company et al. – Claim Login

How Much You Can Get

The payout depends on whether you have proof of purchase.

Without a receipt: you can receive the average manufacturer’s suggested retail price for one Tom’s of Maine toothpaste product, per household.⁴CT Insider. Tom’s of Maine Toothpaste $2.9 Million Settlement

With proof of purchase (a receipt, invoice, or loyalty card record): you can claim a full refund for up to three products.¹ToothpasteSettlement.com. Rabinowitz et al. v. Colgate-Palmolive Company et al. – Claim Login

The actual amount each claimant gets depends on how many valid claims are filed. The $2.9 million fund is divided among approved claims after fees and costs come out.

Key Deadlines

The settlement is not yet final. It still needs court approval, and no payments will go out unless and until the court grants final approval and any appeals are resolved.⁵Seacoast Online. Tom’s of Maine Toothpaste Class Action Settlement

• Claim deadline: July 6, 2026.⁶ToothpasteSettlement.com. Rabinowitz et al. v. Colgate-Palmolive Company et al. – Settlement Website
• Opt-out and objection deadline: July 6, 2026.³PR Newswire. Tom’s of Maine Toothpaste Settlement Notice
• Final approval hearing: September 10, 2026 at 11:00 a.m. Eastern, before Magistrate Judge James M. Wicks in Central Islip, New York.⁷PACER Monitor. Rabinowitz et al. v. Colgate-Palmolive Company et al.

Opting Out or Objecting

If you want to keep the right to sue Colgate-Palmolive or Tom’s of Maine on your own over these claims, you must exclude yourself by mailing an exclusion request postmarked no later than July 6, 2026. You will not get a settlement payment if you opt out.

If you stay in the class but disagree with something about the deal, you can file a written objection by the same date. The court will consider objections at the September 10 hearing, and objectors may appear in person or through their own attorney.⁶ToothpasteSettlement.com. Rabinowitz et al. v. Colgate-Palmolive Company et al. – Settlement Website

Doing nothing means you stay in the class, give up the right to sue over these claims, and receive no payment because you didn’t file a claim.

What Comes Out of the Fund Before Payouts

Class members don’t pay anything separately, but fees and awards are deducted from the $2.9 million before individual checks are issued. Class counsel (The Wright Law Office, Denlea & Carton LLP, and Wilshire Law Firm PLC) plan to seek up to one-third of the fund for attorney fees and expenses. The three named plaintiffs, Jana Rabinowitz, Shana Denny, and Yolanda Pitre, will each ask for a service award of up to $1,000. The court hasn’t yet ruled on those requests, and the final amounts could come in lower.⁸ToothpasteSettlement.com. Rabinowitz et al. v. Colgate-Palmolive Company et al. – Long Form Notice

Why the Case Exists

The lawsuit followed an FDA inspection of the Sanford, Maine facility from May 7 to May 22, 2024. On November 5, 2024, the FDA sent Tom’s of Maine a warning letter citing significant violations of current good manufacturing practice regulations.⁹FDA. Warning Letter – Colgate-Palmolive/Tom’s of Maine, Inc. Inspectors reported finding:

• Pseudomonas aeruginosa in water samples used to make Tom’s Simply White Clean Mint Paste and to rinse equipment, in samples collected between June 2021 and October 2022, along with Ralstonia insidiosa “too numerous to count” at water points of use.⁹FDA. Warning Letter – Colgate-Palmolive/Tom’s of Maine, Inc.
• Paracoccus yeei recovered from a batch of Wicked Cool! Anticavity Toothpaste. The company attributed the finding to a lab error, but the FDA noted the company’s own initial investigation had found no such error.⁹FDA. Warning Letter – Colgate-Palmolive/Tom’s of Maine, Inc.
• A black, mold-like substance on walls and near product-contact equipment, and powder residues on equipment before use for a new batch.¹⁰ABC 7 News. Tom’s Toothpaste Bacteria, Mold Found During Inspection of Maine Facility, FDA Says
• Roughly 400 consumer complaints about odor, color, and taste that went uninvestigated because company procedures only triggered a review once a trend was identified.⁹FDA. Warning Letter – Colgate-Palmolive/Tom’s of Maine, Inc.

Colgate-Palmolive has denied the allegations. According to the company’s own review of pre-release testing data, roughly 4,900 units of toothpaste produced over a three-year period posed “no safety risk to consumers.”¹¹Fox 59. Bought This Toothpaste in the Last 6 Years? You May Qualify for $2.9M Settlement Tom’s of Maine said it was working with the FDA, had engaged water specialists, was investing in a major upgrade to the plant’s water system, and remained “fully confident in the safety and quality” of its toothpaste.¹⁰ABC 7 News. Tom’s Toothpaste Bacteria, Mold Found During Inspection of Maine Facility, FDA Says No product recall has been publicly announced in connection with the inspection findings.¹²CNN. Tom’s of Maine Toothpaste Bacteria Mold FDA

The case is Rabinowitz et al. v. Colgate-Palmolive Company et al., No. 2:25-cv-06996, in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York.¹³CaseMine. Rabinowitz et al. v. Colgate-Palmolive Company et al. Magistrate Judge James M. Wicks granted preliminary approval on March 6, 2026.²GovInfo. Rabinowitz et al. v. Colgate-Palmolive Company et al. – Preliminary Approval Order

What This Settlement Does Not Cover

A separate class action, White v. Colgate-Palmolive Co. et al. (Case No. 1:25-cv-00662, Eastern District of New York), alleges that Tom’s of Maine Silly Strawberry kids’ fluoride-free toothpaste contained unsafe levels of lead and arsenic. That case is not part of the Rabinowitz settlement. It remains active: in March 2026, Judge Orelia E. Merchant let the misrepresentation and negligence per se claims proceed while dismissing certain omission-based claims and the unjust enrichment claim. Fact discovery is scheduled to run through September 30, 2026.¹⁴PACER Monitor. White v. Colgate-Palmolive Co. et al. Filing a Rabinowitz claim does not affect the White case, and vice versa.

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  ToothpasteSettlement.com. Rabinowitz et al. v. Colgate-Palmolive Company et al. – Claim Login
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  GovInfo. Rabinowitz et al. v. Colgate-Palmolive Company et al. – Preliminary Approval Order
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  PR Newswire. Tom’s of Maine Toothpaste Settlement Notice
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  CT Insider. Tom’s of Maine Toothpaste $2.9 Million Settlement
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  Seacoast Online. Tom’s of Maine Toothpaste Class Action Settlement
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  ToothpasteSettlement.com. Rabinowitz et al. v. Colgate-Palmolive Company et al. – Settlement Website
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  PACER Monitor. Rabinowitz et al. v. Colgate-Palmolive Company et al.
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  ToothpasteSettlement.com. Rabinowitz et al. v. Colgate-Palmolive Company et al. – Long Form Notice
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  FDA. Warning Letter – Colgate-Palmolive/Tom’s of Maine, Inc.
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  ABC 7 News. Tom’s Toothpaste Bacteria, Mold Found During Inspection of Maine Facility, FDA Says
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  Fox 59. Bought This Toothpaste in the Last 6 Years? You May Qualify for $2.9M Settlement
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  CNN. Tom’s of Maine Toothpaste Bacteria Mold FDA
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  CaseMine. Rabinowitz et al. v. Colgate-Palmolive Company et al.
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  PACER Monitor. White v. Colgate-Palmolive Co. et al.