Held v. Classic Accessories, Inc.

On December 11, 2015, citizen enforcer Anthony Held, Ph.D, P.E. and settling party Classic Accessories, Inc. (“Classic Accessories”) entered into an out-of-court settlement agreement.  Held had alleged that Classic Accessories sold motorcycle tank bags with vinyl/PVC components 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, Classic Accessories agreed not to sell any motorcycle tank bags with vinyl/PVC components in California after November 15, 2015, unless the bags 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 Classic Accessories provide Held with written certification by April 1, 2016 that all motorcycle tank bags with vinyl/PVC components sold in California qualify as reformulated products under the agreement, Held agreed to waive a portion of the civil penalty that would otherwise be applied.

The Settlement Agreement requires settlement payments of $34,000, divided therein between civil penalties, 75% of which are paid to California’s Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment, and compensation to citizen enforcer Held and his counsel for their successful enforcement of this matter in the public interest.