Vinocur Reaches Settlement With Yamaha Re: DEHP in Benches

Laurence Vinocur has negotiated a settlement with Yamaha Corporation of America regarding alleged violations of Proposition 65.  Vinocur alleged that Yamaha sold benches with vinyl/PVC seats in California that contained the phthalate chemical DEHP, which is known to the State to cause birth defects and/or reproductive harm.  Companies offering products for sale that contain such chemicals are required by Proposition 65 to provide consumers with a “clear and reasonable” warning of the exposure risks, which Vinocur alleged Yamaha failed to do.

In addition to paying civil penalties, Yamaha has agreed to offer for sale in California only benches that have been reformulated to be virtually free of DEHP.  Should Yamaha accelerate the reformulation and provide written certification of this by November 1, 2015, Vinocur has agreed to waive a significant portion of the civil penalty.

For more details of the settlement, see the case summary on our website: Vinocur v. Yamaha Corporation of America

The Chanler Group represents citizen enforcers who, acting in the public interest, commence actions against businesses offering products for sale in California that contain chemicals known to cause cancer or reproductive harm without first providing the health hazard warning required by Proposition 65. Citizen enforcers bringing Proposition 65 actions in the public interest may obtain a Court Judgment imposing civil penalties, an injunction requiring reformulation of products, and/or provision of health hazard warnings. The Chanler Group has represented citizen enforcers of Proposition 65 for more than twenty years.