Vinocur v. Graco Children's Products, Inc.

Posted: 10/11/2013  browse the case archive

Citizen enforcer Laurence Vinocur’s allegations against defendant Graco Children’s Products, Inc. (“Graco”) were resolved on October 11, 2013, when the parties executed a Consent Judgment.  In this matter, Vinocur alleged that Graco sold padded upholstered car seats and playards/bassinets with foam padding containing the flame retardant tris(1,3-dichloro-2-propyl) phosphate (“TDCPP”) and vinyl/PVC car seat protectors containing the phthalate chemical di(2-ethylhexyl)phthalate (“DEHP”) and heavy metal lead in the State of California without providing the requisite health hazard warnings.

As part of the settlement, Graco agreed not to sell any car seats, playards/bassinets, or car seat protectors in California after March 31, 2014, unless the products contain no more than 25 parts per million of TDCPP and tris(2-chloroethyl) phosphate (“TCEP”)  and no more than 1,000 parts per million of DEHP, DBP, and BBP and no more than 100 parts per million of lead when analyzed using state or federally approved testing methodologies. Additionally, Graco agreed to provide its vendors with the reformulation standards by October 15, 2013, and instruct them to provide products that comply expeditiously.  Products currently existing in Graco’s inventory may be sold with Proposition 65 warnings provided.  Should Graco provide written certification that all products sold in California after November 1, 2013 qualify as reformulated, Vinocur agreed to waive a portion of the civil fine.  Additionally, Vinocur provided a credit for extending the breadth of reformulation, among other credits available, if Graco should provide written certification that all products sold in California after March 31, 2014, contain no detectable amounts of tris(2,3-dibromopropyl)phosphate (“TDBPP”) in addition to satisfying the DEHP, lead, TCEP and TDCPP requirements.

The Consent Judgment requires settlement payments of $151,000, divided therein between civil penalties, 75% of which are paid to California’s Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment, and compensation to whistleblower Vinocur and his counsel for their successful enforcement of this matter in the public interest.

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