Lumber Liquidators Agrees to Settle China-Made Flooring Class Actions for $36M

Hardwood flooring heavyweight Lumber Liquidators on Tuesday announced a “memorandum of understanding” (MOU) to settle all pending class action claims over its China-made laminate flooring products for an aggregate amount of $36 million. News of the settlement, which will resolve two multi-district litigations Lumber Liquidators faced in the Eastern District of Virginia, was first reported by Reuters Tuesday night.

Per a press release, Lumber Liquidators Holdings Inc. will, under the terms of the MOU, contribute $22 million in cash and offer $14 million in store credit vouchers to put to rest all claims brought against the company by those who purchased its China-made laminate flooring sold between January 1, 2009 and May 31, 2015. The settlement does not constitute an admission by Lumber Liquidators of any fault or liability, the press release notes, and is subject to court approval and approval by the plaintiffs’ co-lead counsel.

Sparked by a March 2015 investigative report from “60 Minutes”—which itself came on the heels of a December 2014 lawsuit filed by non-profit Global Community Monitor—one MDL alleged certain flooring sold by Lumber Liquidators in North America had higher levels of formaldehyde than allowable under California law. Subsequent testing of the China-sourced flooring in Virginia, Florida, Texas, Illinois and New York also revealed dangerous formaldehyde levels.

The other MDL covered by this settlement claimed the company’s flooring was not as durable as it was advertised to be.

Lawsuits against Lumber Liquidators in California were settled in March 2016, with the company halting the sale its allegedly defective flooring roughly 10 months prior.

Which Lumber Liquidators products were supposedly involved in all this?

The non-exhaustive list of specific flooring that may off-gas excessive levels of formaldehyde includes (but is not limited to):

8 mm Bristol County Cherry Laminate Flooring
8 mm Dream Home Nirvana French Oak Laminate Flooring
12 mm Dream Home Kensington Manor Antique Bamboo Laminate Flooring
12 mm Dream Home St. James Oceanside Plank Bamboo Laminate Flooring
12 mm Dream Home Kensington Manor Warm Springs Chestnut Laminate Flooring
15 mm Dream Home St. James Sky Lakes Pine Laminate Flooring
12 mm Dream Home Ispiri Chimney Tops Smoked Oak Laminate Flooring
12 mm Dream Home Kensington Manor Imperial Teak Laminate Flooring
12 mm Dream Home St. James Vintner’s Reserve Laminate Flooring
12 mm Dream Home Kensington Manor Cape Doctor Laminate Flooring
12 mm Dream Home St. James Cumberland Mountain Oak Laminate Flooring
12 mm Dream Home Ispiri Americas Mission Olive Laminate Flooring
12 mm Dream Home Kensington Manor Glacier Peak Poplar Laminate Flooring
12 mm Dream Home Kensington Manor Golden Teak Laminate Flooring
12 mm Dream Home Kensington Manor Handscraped Imperial Teak Laminate Flooring (SKU 10029601)
12 mm Dream Home Kensington Manor Handscraped Summer Retreat Teak Laminate Flooring
12 mm Dream Home Kensington Manor Sandy Hills Hickory Laminate Flooring
12 mm Dream Home Kensington Manor Tanzanian Wenge Laminate Flooring
8 mm Dream Home Nirvana Royal Mahogany Laminate Flooring
12 mm Dream Home St. James Blacksburg Barn Board Laminate Flooring
12 mm Dream Home St. James Brazilian Koa Laminate Flooring
12 mm Dream Home Ispiri Poplar Forest Oak Laminate Flooring
12 mm Dream Home Kensington Manor Fumed African Ironwood Laminate Flooring
12 mm Dream Home St. James African Mahogany Laminate Flooring
12 mm Dream Home St. James Chimney Rock Charcoal Laminate Flooring
12 mm Dream Home St. James Nantucket Beech Laminate Flooring

I have Lumber Liquidators flooring in my home. What do I need to do for my piece of the settlement?

Right now, there is nothing consumers need to do to make sure they get their piece of the $36 million settlement. The administration process for class action settlements, like lawsuits and MDLs themselves, often takes months to play out. ClassAction.org will provide updates on everything as new developments roll in. We’ll keep you posted. In the meantime, you can learn more about the settlement process for class action lawsuits here.

Please refresh my memory. What’s the difference between a class action lawsuit and multi-district litigation? 

No worries, reader. We have you covered. All you need to know about multi-district litigation can be found here.