National Advertising Division Finds Certain Claims for Shark WandVac Supported; Recommends SharkNinja Modify or Discontinue Others

New York, NY – December 8, 2023 – In a challenge brought by competitor Dyson, Inc., the National Advertising Division (NAD) of BBB National Programs determined that SharkNinja Operating Company LLC provided a reasonable basis for certain claims for its Shark Wandvac Cordless Self-Empty System, including that “Traditional emptying releases dust & allergen into the air” and claims that expressly identify the Wandvac base as “HEPA-sealed.”

However, NAD recommended that SharkNinja discontinue claims that the Wandvac dust bin holds up to 30 days of dust and debris and that it modify claims that the Wandvac eliminates dust clouds and allows for up to 100x less dust exposure. 

NAD also recommended that SharkNinja modify its advertising to:

• Avoid linking the 100x less dust exposure claims to dust cloud imagery.
• Avoid conveying the message that there is no dust exposure when the dust bin in the base is emptied.
• Make clear that the base of Wandvac is HEPA sealed and avoid conveying the message that the vacuum itself is HEPA sealed.

30 Days Claims

NAD concluded that SharkNinja’s advertising reasonably conveys a message that the Wandvac dust bin can hold all of the dust and debris collected by the Wandvac over 30 days of typical use. NAD determined that SharkNinja’s study did not provide reliable support for the 30-day claims and recommended that the following claims be discontinued:  

• “The base holds up to 30 days of dust & debris.”
• “Fine dust and debris go straight to the Self-Empty Base and are sealed away for up to 30 days.”

NAD noted that the claim, “No more daily trips to the trash bin” was not challenged independently of the 30-day claim and therefore may continue to be made if the 30-day claims are discontinued.

100x Claims

Dyson challenged several SharkNinja claims that the Wandvac eliminates dust clouds and allows for up to 100x less dust exposure. NAD concluded that such claims reasonably convey the messages that:

• Wandvac users are exposed to 100x less airborne dust and debris when its dustbin is emptied into the trash compared to competing vacuum users.
• The Wandvac releases less dust and debris into the air when its dustbin is emptied into the trash compared to Dyson vacuums and other non-“self-emptying” vacuums.

NAD determined that SharkNinja’s evidence provided a reasonable basis for the claim that auto-emptying the Wandvac vacuum causes up to 100x less dust exposure compared to manually emptying the Wandvac and that no dust clouds are created. However, NAD did not find support for the message that the Wandvac resulted in 100x less dust exposure compared to any competitors, particularly when the emptying of the dust bin is taken into account. 

Therefore, NAD recommended that Shark Ninja modify its advertising, as well as the following claims, to clearly and conspicuously identify that the basis of the comparison was auto-emptying versus manually emptying the Wandvac’s dust cup:

• “Up to 100x less dust exposure in your home’s air.”
• “Up to 100x less dust in your home vs. traditional emptying.”
• “Up to 100x less dust exposure in your home’s air* (*vs. traditional empty).”
• “Wandvac empties automatically into a HEPA-sealed base for up to 100x less dust and irritants in your air.”

Dust Cloud Depictions

Dyson challenged depictions of the manual emptying of a dust bin that created a giant cloud of dust. Such images on the SharkNinja’s website were labeled with the text, “Traditional emptying” and a caption stated, “Traditional emptying releases dust & allergen into the air.”

NAD concluded that the claim was substantiated and that the depiction of emptying the dust bin, when untied from the 100x claim, did not convey a falsely disparaging message.

However, when the dust cloud imagery is paired with the 100x claim, NAD determined that this reasonably conveys a comparative message about how much dust is created—100x more—when using competing vacuums compared to the Wandvac. SharkNinja provided no evidence comparing the dust clouds of Wandvac to any competing vacuums. Accordingly, NAD recommended that SharkNinja modify its advertising to avoid linking the 100x claims to the dust cloud imagery.

Never-Empty Claims

NAD concluded that SharkNinja’s advertising reasonably conveyed the messages that:

• Wandvac users do not need to manually empty the product’s dustbin in the same or similar manner as traditional vacuums.
• The Wandvac self-empty system allows for “hands-free debris disposal” such that a user will not ever need to “touch” the dirt and debris collected into the system.
• The Wandvac prevents captured dust and allergens from being released back into the air when the vacuum’s dustbin is emptied.

Although SharkNinja submitted evidence showing that the Wandvac does not result in dust clouds during the auto-empty process, NAD found that there was no evidence in the record that the same is true when the dust bin is emptied. Therefore, NAD recommended that SharkNinja modify its advertising, as well as the following claims, to avoid conveying the message that there is no dust exposure when the dust bin in the base is emptied:

• “No dust clouds. No more dirty work.”
• "Hands-free debris disposal.”

HEPA Claims

NAD concluded that SharkNinja’s claims, which expressly identify the Wandvac base as HEPA-sealed, are not misleading and that submitted testing provided a reasonable basis for such claims. Therefore, NAD found the following claims to be substantiated:

• “HEPA-Sealed Base”
• “Fine dust and debris go straight to the self-empty base and are completely sealed keeping irritants from being released back into the air you breathe.”
• “Wandvac automatically empties into a HEPA-sealed base …”

However, NAD identified several unsupported messages reasonably conveyed where SharkNinja’s claims do not clearly reference the base. Therefore, NAD recommended that SharkNinja modify its advertising, as well as the following claims, to make clear that the base of Wandvac is HEPA sealed and avoid conveying the message that the vacuum itself is HEPA sealed:

• "Self-Empty System … Traps & seals 99.97% of dust, allergens, & irritants (*Based on ASTM F1977, down to .3 microns).”
• “Self-Empty System. Anti Allergen | HEPA”
• “HEPA filtration and anti-allergen complete seal: Captures and traps over 99.97% of dust & allergens.”
• “HEPA sealed clean air system.”
• “Anti-Allergen Complete Seal with HEPA captures and traps 99.9% of dust and allergens.”

In its advertiser statement, SharkNinja stated that it “agrees to comply with NAD’s recommendations with respect to the subject advertising.” SharkNinja further stated that although it “strongly disagrees with NAD’s findings and analysis with respect to the capacity of the self-empty base, it will, in the spirit of voluntary self-regulation, accept NAD’s recommendations.”

All BBB National Programs case decision summaries can be found in the case decision library. For the full text of NAD, NARB, and CARU decisions, subscribe to the online archive. Per NAD/NARB procedures, this release shall not be used for advertising or promotional purposes.