Englander v. Apache Hose & Belting Company, Inc.

On April 26, 2016, citizen enforcer Peter Englander and settling party Apache Hose & Belting Company, Inc. (“Apache Hose”) entered into an out-of-court settlement agreement.  Englander had alleged that Apache Hose sold vinyl/PVC fuel pump nozzle grips containing the phthalate chemical di(2-ethylhexyl)phthalate (“DEHP”) in the State of California without providing the requisite health hazard warnings.

As part of the settlement, Apache Hose agreed not to sell any vinyl/PVC fuel pump nozzle grips in California after May 1, 2016, unless the grips contain less than 1,000 parts per million of DEHP in each component when analyzed using state or federally approved testing methodologies, OR have Proposition 65 warnings provided.  Should Apache Hose provide Englander with written certification by June 1, 2016 that all vinyl/PVC fuel pump nozzle grips sold in California qualify as reformulated products under the agreement, Englander agreed to waive a portion of the civil penalty that would otherwise be applied.

The Settlement Agreement requires settlement payments of $28,500, divided therein between civil penalties, 75% of which are paid to California’s Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment, and compensation to citizen enforcer Englander and his counsel for their successful enforcement of this matter in the public interest.