The latest in the plumbing products failure and class action suit category is…F1807 fittings for PEX piping systems.
Zurn Pex, Inc. or Zurn Industries, LLC specifically are included in a products liability lawsuit. Final Approval was granted on Feb. 27, 2013. The suit alleges Zurn sold defective F1807 Pipe Fittings between 1996 and 2010 that prematurely degrade, leak and cause damage as a result of corrosion. Past claims must have been filed by April 1, 2014 and for all other leaks, you must submit a claims form within 12 months of an eligible leak or the discovery of a flow differential up until April 1, 2020. An F1807 fitting shall mean any yellow brass plumbing fittings and their attendant clamps or crimp rings regardless if they are made of other materials. This does not include Zurn Pex polymer fittings or fittings made with other brass alloys such as DZR or ECO brass. It is sufficient to say that just the presence of these fittings does not warrant a viable claim. You must have a leak and be able to prove it or are experiencing a significant reduction in water flow.
Please note that no admittance of any wrongdoing was acknowledged by Zurn and that the failure rate of F1807 fittings was minimal (< 1/100 of 1% of the fittings sold in the US) and within expected ranges for similar products.
There has apparently been $20M set aside for a “qualified settlement fund” and $8.5M++ for attorney’s fees. Now this is not all available at once. There’s like $3M available per year until year 7 when it goes to $2M per year. If you think you might have a claim check out case In re Zurn Pex Plumbing Products Liability Litigation, Case No. 8-cv-01958, U.S. District Court, District of Minnesota. You might be eligible for up to 60% of documented damages or $7K. To identify if you have these fittings, look for stamps that say “Qpex” or “F1807” on them.
Here’s the Claims Administrator contact info, Zurn Pex Claims Administrator c/o Epiq Systems P.O. Box 3266 Portland, OR 97208-3266; 1 (877) 341-4602. The official web site is www.plumbingfittingsettlement.com.
For those who will discount any systems that are identified as QPEX only, the FAQ within the lawsuit website says “Zurn’s yellow brass F1807 Fittings (known as QestPEX Crimp System, Qicksert fittings, and Qick/Sert insert fittings) were stamped with “Qpex” and can be located at joints in the plastic pipe.”
