Congoleum Asbestos Trust

Congoleum Corporation started in the early 1800s by the Narin family in Scotland under the name Narin Linoleum Co. as a floor cloth manufacturer. After the company was moved to the United States and began producing vinyl floors, asbestos was added to the products.

Congoleum, based in New Jersey, manufactured resilient sheet flooring, floor tiles, inlaid linoleum flooring and other flooring styles using the dangerous additive to increase the product’s strength and heat, fire and chemical resistance. Congoleum, like other companies of the time, never warned its employees or others who came into contact with the products of the risks associated with asbestos exposure. Records show that many companies instead worked to conceal the dangers to ensure they would continue to earn massive profits.

By the time the general public learned of the actual dangers of asbestos, scores of people started becoming gravely ill as a result of exposure. By 1993, the company, overwhelmed with legal claims due to its use of asbestos, filed for bankruptcy protection. The Chapter 11 bankruptcy was finalized in 2010.

Specific Lawsuit Against Congoleum

A floor covering contractor named Robert Ehret, filed a lawsuit against Congoleum and many other asbestos product producing companies after he was diagnosed with mesothelioma. Congoleum was the only company that did not settle with Ehret.

After refusing to settle, Ehret died while the trial continued. His family continued the suit in his interest and the jury eventually found Congoleum liable. Congoleum was assigned 25 percent fault while the other companies were only 12 percent at fault. Based on this finding, the jury also awarded an amount of $3.5 million.

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How Did the Congoleum Corporation Use Asbestos?

Despite knowing about the dangers of asbestos, the company still used the product. Some of Congoleum’s products did carry labeling indicating added asbestos, but warnings were never included.

Manufacturers that made asbestos-containing vinyl flooring followed a similar process that included opening 50-, 70- or 100-pound bags of asbestos and removing the product by hand into large vats. The asbestos was mixed with other products, including liquid chemicals and water, to form a mixture that was put through a series of rollers and heat to create flooring.

As a result of a 2004 partnership with 3M, Congoleum no longer used asbestos in their products and instead replaced it with Scotchgard Protector. This had never been done before and gave Congoleum a great market advantage.

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Congoleum Corporation Asbestos Containing Products

In manufacturing flooring, manufacturers, including Congoleum, used asbestos because it improved the products. Some of Congoleum’s leading products contained pounds of asbestos. The company produced vinyl and linoleum flooring under brand names that include:

• Cushioflor
• Fashionflor
• Gold Seal Narion
• Ultraflo
• Flor-Ever Vinyl
• Vinylbest
• CongoWall
• Ranchtile

What did the Congoleum Corporation use asbestos for?

• Abrasion resistance
• Dimensional stability
• Durability
• Flexibility
• Heat, oil, grease resistance
• Fungal resistance
• Moisture and rot resistance

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Congoleum Corporation and Hazardous Occupations

In manufacturing Congoleum vinyl flooring, workers were often exposed to airborne asbestos during the measuring, blending and mixing process. Because asbestos fibers are so lightweight, the fibers can linger in the air for hours.

In addition, workers who install or repair asbestos flooring can also be exposed to the asbestos toxin. Such exposure often occurs when old, brittle floors are removed or sanded.

What occupations were known to have an increased risk of asbestos exposure?

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Congoleum Corporation Average Settlement Amounts

The Congoleum Plan Trust, like other asbestos trusts, was established to help people who were exposed to asbestos. Court documents show that corporate executives knew about the dangers asbestos would cause. Instead of warning the workers and providing adequate protection from the dangers, companies, including Congoleum, chose to ignore the warning to put profits ahead of worker safety.

For the Congoleum asbestos trust, claimants have an option of choosing a quick review for faster access to a monetary settlement (expedited review) or a slower review that may provide a higher settlement amount (individual review). Both types of review require a significant amount of documentation and proof of exposure. The trusts also distribute funds based on the severity of the disease and other factors.

Disease	Compensation
Mesothelioma	$139,800
Lung Cancer 1	$45,400
Lung Cancer 2	$12,300
Other Cancer	$15,000
Severe Asbestosis	$37,000

Expedited Review

Claimants who choose an expedited review will receive a fixed amount of funding based on the schedule determined by the trustees. An expedited review is intended to help asbestos victims who need fast access to settlement funds. Trustees process expedited claims within 90 days in the first-in, first-out (FIFO) processing queue.

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Individual Review

By filing for an individual review, claimants are entitled to a thorough examination of medical and occupational records. An individual review takes longer (120 days from entry into the FIFO processing queue), but it could mean more substantial financial settlement.

The trust does not provide information for the average value of asbestosis/pleural disease and other asbestos disease claims in an individual review.

In 2017, the trust received 6,857 trust claims requests and paid 780. Since the trust began, it has denied 261,313 claims.