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Lumber Liquidators has reached an agreement with the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) not to resume selling Chinese-made laminate flooring that may sicken consumers with dangerous levels of formaldehyde.
The agreement also provides for continuing comprehensive testing that enables consumers to determine whether their Lumber Liquidators laminate flooring is safe.
The CPSC said that the agreement brings a close to the federal investigation of Lumber Liquidators’ laminate flooring, which a “60 Minutes” report found to contain amounts of formaldehyde that exceeded limits set by the California Air Resources Board, despite product packaging that stated otherwise.
After conducting extensive tests of Lumber Liquidators products and confirming the findings of “60 Minutes” investigative reporters, the CPSC announced that there will be no mandatory recall of the alleged toxic laminate flooring based on the decision of Lumber Liquidators to no longer sell the Chinese-made laminate flooring.
Additionally, any future actions concerning the remaining stock of laminate flooring, including its disposal, must be approved by the CPSC first under the terms of the agreement.
Lumber Liquidators will continue its testing program for formaldehyde emissions in consumers’ homes. Any consumers who bought Chinese-made laminate flooring from the company between February 2012 through May 2015 may request a test kit and screening test at no cost.
Homeowners who find they have elevated levels of formaldehyde in their homes will be contacted by a Lumber Liquidators representative to arrange for more extensive testing of the laminate flooring.
“The retailer has agreed to work with consumers to reduce the formaldehyde emissions levels and improve the indoor air quality of the home,” the CPSC said. “If those efforts are unsuccessful, the company will pay for a certified industrial hygienist to examine the home and propose an additional remedy for the homeowner. The additional remedy would be free to the consumer and could involve replacement of the flooring or repairs to the home.”
The CPSC said that it does not intend to encourage consumers to pull up Chinese-made laminate flooring installed in their home because doing so could expose residents to increased formaldehyde levels.
The problems with Lumber Liquidators’ flooring were first exposed in March 2015 when the CBS news program “60 Minutes” tested formaldehyde levels in 31 boxes of laminate flooring products purchased from Lumber Liquidator stores in five states and reported that several samples contained dangerous levels of formaldehyde.
The report caught the attention of the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), which conducted a more in-depth analysis of the Chinese-made laminate flooring and confirmed the presence of formaldehyde in the products.
The CPSC then enlisted the help of the CDC and the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) in determining what health and safety risks the Lumber Liquidators flooring posed.
Formaldehyde exposure is known to increase the risk of cancer and leukemia, and it can also cause burning eyes, nose and throat irritation, coughing, headaches, dizziness, and nausea.
Flooring made with high levels of formaldehyde can be especially dangerous to toddlers and young children who play and crawl on the floor and have underdeveloped immune systems.
About 614,000 U.S. consumers purchased the Chinese-made laminate flooring through Lumber Liquidators from 2011 through May 2015. The CPSC said Lumber Liquidators has about 22 million feet of laminate flooring in its inventory that it has agreed not to sell.
Some consumers who installed the suspect Lumber Liquidators laminate flooring in their homes filed lawsuits against the company, claiming it falsely stated on its packaging that the laminate flooring meets California’s “advanced environmental requirements,” which are among the strictest in the nation.
Over 125 of these Lumber Liquidators toxic laminate flooring lawsuits were consolidated into a multidistrict litigation (In re: Lumber Liquidators Chinese-Manufactured Flooring Products Marketing, Sales Practices and Products Liability Litigation, MDL. No. 2627) in Virginia federal court in March 2016.
Plaintiffs in 29 states allege the Toano, Virginia-based flooring manufacturer misrepresented its Chinese-made laminate flooring as compliant with California Air Resources Board (CARB) Phase 2 safety standards.
In response to the allegations, Lumber Liquidators halted the sales of the laminate flooring in question in May 2015 and launched a program offering free home-testing kits to consumers.
However, the plaintiffs claim these home-testing kits were faulty, were not independently evaluated and did not employ methods recommended by air quality regulators.
Plaintiffs say the tests deliberately give false results to foster a false sense of security.
The Lumber Liquidators Class Action Lawsuit is In re: Lumber Liquidators Chinese-Manufactured Flooring Products Marketing, Sales Practices and Products Liability Litigation, MDL. No. 2627, in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia.
UPDATE: July 2018, the Lumber Liquidators flooring class action settlement is now open. Click here to file a claim.
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