Amazon's $310 Best-Seller Mattress Sparks $20K Lawsuit Over Hidden Hazard

The Drama: Zinus’s wildly popular “Green Tea Mattress” (4.4★ from 130K+ reviews, ~$310 on Amazon) is now facing class-action litigation after multiple U.S. customers reported severe health complications tied to flame-resistant fiberglass fibers leaking from the product.

The Damage: One California woman, Vanessa Gutierrez, purchased a $400 Zinus mattress for her 4-year-old daughter through Amazon. What followed: visible scars on the child’s chest and calves, plus nearly $20,000 in medical expenses. She filed suit in Sacramento last July, alleging similar injuries across dozens of households.

What Experts Say: The Consumer Product Safety Commission confirmed fiberglass (a plastic-glass composite) can irritate eyes, nose, and throat—but claims long-term harm is unlikely if the outer cover stays intact. Their statement: most complaints involved removed or damaged covers. Zinus’s defense? The mattresses ship with explicit warnings NOT to strip the outer layer.

The Catch: With 130K+ positive reviews, this is Amazon’s cash cow. Yet plaintiffs’ lawyer James Radcliffe (Cueto Law) told CBS the fallout has “ravaged thousands of individuals’ lives across the U.S.”

Bottom Line: Classic consumer safety gray zone—product works as designed IF instructions are followed, but real-world usage tells a different story. Worth watching as discovery unfolds.