Lowe’s Chinese Drywall Settlement Offer Increased

Lowe’s Companies Inc. has increased their Chinese drywall settlement offers, providing $100,000 for customers who bought the toxic wallboard at their stores and suffered more substantial damage to their home or medical injuries. 

The Lowe’s Chinese drywall settlement was proposed last week and will likely be approved in December. It represents a massive increase over the home improvement store’s previous offer of $2,000 and $2,500 in in-store credit, which disappointed home owners who purchased toxic imported wallboard from the stores.

The $100,000 offer is only available for people who suffered at least $4,500 in damages or medical bills due to Chinese drywall purchased at Lowe’s. The damages must be an estimate from an independent contractor. In addition to the larger offer, the store chain is also offering $250 gift cards for customers who can prove they bought Chinese drywall at Lowe’s but cannot prove they suffered damages. The store chain is also offering $50 for customers who say they purchased Chinese drywall at Lowe’s but have no proof of purchase.

The U.S. Consumer Products Safety Commission (CPSC) has received thousands of complaints from across the United States from homeowners who say that toxic Chinese wallboard imported between 2004 and 2007 releases sulfuric odors that corrode wiring throughout the home, damage appliances and may cause various health problems. Many of the problems with the Chinese drywall have been confirmed by laboratory testing.

Millions of sheets of the toxic drywall were imported from China into the United States due to a domestic shortage caused by a housing boom and construction following a serious of hurricanes that struck the southeastern United States.

Homeowners throughout the United States have filed lawsuits over Chinese drywall, naming manufacturers, distributors and builders. In June 2009, all of the federal drywall litigation was consolidated and centralized in an MDL, or Multidistrict Litigation, in New Orleans under U.S. District Judge Eldon Fallon.

In previous Chinese drywall settlements and jury awards, the court has estimated that repairing homes built with toxic drywall costs between $40-80 per square foot.