Brimer v. Bed Bath & Beyond, Inc. and Neatfreak Group Inc.

Citizen enforcer Russell Brimer and the defendants Bed Bath & Beyond, Inc. and Neatfreak Group Inc. (collectively “Neatfreak”) executed a Consent Judgment on June 12, 2013.  In this matter, Brimer alleged that Neatfreak sold laundry totes with vinyl/PVC handles containing the heavy metal lead in the State of California without providing the requisite health hazard warnings. 

As part of the settlement, Neatfreak agreed not to sell any Neatfreak laundry totes in California after June 12, 2013, unless the laundry totes contain no more than 90 parts per million of lead content in any accessible component when analyzed using state or federally approved testing methodologies.  Should Neatfreak provide written certification that all laundry totes qualify as reformulated by September 1, 2013, Brimer agreed to waive a portion of the civil fine that would otherwise be applied. 

The Consent Judgment requires settlement payments of $36,000, divided therein between civil penalties, 75% of which are paid to California’s Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment, and compensation to whistleblower Brimer and his counsel for their successful enforcement of this matter in the public interest.