EU Bans Use of DMF on Leather Sofas

Jan. 16, 2011 - PRLog -- Nottinghamshire, United Kingdom –  December of 2010 brought the 408-Class Action suit against the Zurich insurance company to a close. The suit, which was the largest consumer group litigation in the history of the United Kingdom, sought to seek restitution for health problems and other damages suffered by owners of leather furniture containing dimethyl fumarate (DMF).(http://www.cleaningleatherfurniture.net)
People like Anne Glover, a Blackrod resident did not know what to do. The disabled grandmother, who has difficulty moving around her home and would sometimes sleep on the sofa in her living room, has been living without her much needed sofas for the past three years. She couldn't afford to replace the furniture after Land of Leather had taken the sofas away, without replacing them or refunding her, after she complained that the chemicals used in the sofa gave both her and her granddaughter terrible rashes.
She was not alone. It seems that many others (thousands, according to Richard Langton, who was the senior litigation partner for the firm that handled the suit) suffered similar skin problems from the leather sofas; problems that resulted from the use of DMF. It was the joint effort of all the consumers that finally won them the suit launched against Land of Leather, Walmsleys, and Argos. At the end of the litigation, it was announced that each claimant is to receive £1,800 for the skin problems they suffered from the furniture. The Zurich insurance company stated that they hoped the individuals who suffered from health problems can properly move on with their lives and put the incident behind them. They also announced that they are to continue discussions with Land of Leather, which initially did  not comply with the terms of their insurance policies.
One of the direct effects of the lawsuit was the banning of DMF in the European Union. Yet despite this ruling, it seems that the retailers involved –all of which accepted liability on the surface – are  washing their hands clean of the matter, announcing that the problematic sofas are said to have been manufactured by two Chinese companies, Linkwise and Eurosofa. So once again a consumer related problem is blamed on companies in a country half a world away. The question on some people's minds is when will retailers and distributors begin taking some of the blame as well? After all, they were the ones who purchased and brought in the products in the first place.