California Air Resources Board

Lumber Liquidators, Inc. Case Settles for $2.5 Million

Lumber Liquidators, Inc., of Toano, Virginia, has paid the California Air Resources Board (ARB) $2.5 million to settle ARB claims that Lumber Liquidators sold, supplied, or offered for sale in California composite wood products that ARB testing showed exceeded state formaldehyde limits, and that Lumber Liquidators failed to take reasonable prudent precautions to ensure those products met such limits designed to protect public health.  Samples obtained between September 2013 and May 2015 were labeled as compliant and being sold at various Lumber Liquidator retail outlets throughout California.  The ARB notified the company of its testing that showed some samples exceeded the state’s formaldehyde limits and that the company failed to take reasonable prudent precautions to ensure that laminate flooring sold in California contained composite wood products that complied with the formaldehyde emissions standards set forth in California’s Airborne Toxic Control Measure (ATCM) for composite wood products.  In addition to their $2,500,000 payment, Lumber Liquidators has developed, and agreed to implement, a “Fabricator Laminate Evaluation and Audit Program” and a “Composite Core Testing Research Program,” requiring the company to conduct regular audits of existing and new suppliers and to randomly test composite core samples in accordance with ARB’s standard operating procedure for preparing finished goods samples for testing.

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