Customers say they were tricked by Reese's pumpkins. See who won the lawsuit.

Four people who purchased Reese's Peanut butter products in 2023 said they were distraught when the candies did not match the pictures on the packages.Show Caption

Hershey's customers weren't really tricked by Reese's Peanut Butter Pumpkins, a judge has ruled.On Sept. 19, a Florida judge dismissed a lawsuit brought against Hershey's last year accusing the confectionery company of deceptive marketing for various Reese's Peanut Butter products, including Reese's Peanut Butter Pumpkins.In her ruling, U.S. District Judge Melissa Damian said the plaintiffs – four people who purchased Reese's Peanut Butter products in 2023 – did not provide enough evidence to allege economic injury. The customers claimed they purchased the chocolates because of "cool" packaging and were disappointed to find "blank" chocolates inside the wrappers.Here's what to know about the lawsuit, and why it melted away.Why was Hershey's sued? Candy didn't match packaging, customers said.Florida residents Nathan Vidal, Debra Kennick, Abdjul Martin and Eduardo Granados sued Hershey's in May 2024, claiming that several Reese's Peanut Butter products featured "unlawful, fraudulent, unfair, misleading and/or deceptive" advertising, according to court documents. In addition to the peanut butter pumpkins, the customers also mentioned the peanut butter ghosts, bats, footballs and winter shapes, like the snowmen, stockings and bells.Vidal purchased three bags of Reese's Peanut Butter Pumpkins in 2023 because he "believed that the product contained a cool-looking carving of a pumpkin’s mouth and eyes," according to court documents. But when he opened the chocolates, which he said "did not contain any of the artistic carvings of the mouth or eyes as pictured on the label," he was distraught. Vidal claimed he would not have purchased the chocolates if he knew they didn't adorn the details as pictured on the exterior packaging.Specifically, the four customers argued that Hershey's violated Florida Deceptive And Unfair Trade Practices Act, which is designed to protect Floridians from unfair competition, deceptive acts and unethical practices.The group demanded $5 million from Hershey's, which they claimed represented the sales of special Reese's Peanut Butter products in Florida over the past three years.What did Hershey say? 'Reasonable customer' wouldn't be deceived.In September 2024, Hershey's asked the court to dismiss the case, claiming the customers didn't actually sustain injury from purchasing the chocolates.Hershey's argued the customers got "exactly what they paid for" – Reese's chocolates, which were not "defective, inedible or lacked the expected delicious taste," court documents state.Hershey's added that a "reasonable customer" wouldn't be deceived by the chocolates, especially because a "Decorating Suggestion" disclaimer is featured on each bag of special Reese's Peanut Butter chocolates, per court documents.In effort to further its point, Hershey's outlined how bags of the Reese's Peanut Butter Pumpkins display a pumpkin chocolate with a bite out of it."After all, no consumer acting reasonably would expect to buy a food product with a huge chunk bitten out," Hershey's argued, per court documents.Hershey's did not immediately respond for comment when contacted by USA TODAY on Thursday, Sept. 25.What happens next?In her ruling, Damian said the plaintiffs could file an amended complaint, a revised version of the original complaint to start back at square one.For now, Reese's Peanut Butter Pumpkins, Ghosts and other chocolates, won't be changing in taste or design.Greta Cross is a national trending reporter at USA TODAY. Story idea? Email her at gcross@usatoday.com.