Wozniak v. NMTC, Inc.

Whistleblower Paul Wozniak and settling party NMTC, Inc. (“NMTC”) entered into an out-of-court Settlement Agreement on December 17, 2014, which resolved Wozniak’s allegations that NMTC sold vinyl/PVC automobile seat covers 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, NMTC agreed not to sell any vinyl/PVC automobile seat covers in California after January 1, 2015, unless the seat covers contain less than 1,000 parts per million of DEHP in any accessible component when analyzed using state or federally approved testing methodologies.  Should NMTC provide written certification by May 1, 2014, that all vinyl/PVC planner covers qualify as reformulated, Wozniak agreed to waive a portion of the civil fine that would otherwise be applied. 

The Settlement Agreement requires settlement payments of $15,500, divided therein between civil penalties, 75% of which are paid to California’s Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment, and compensation to citizen enforcer Wozniak and his counsel for their successful enforcement of this matter in the public interest.