Tyco, TIG Insurance Agree to Settle ‘Forever Chemicals’ Fire Foam Litigation

Three months after Tyco Fire Products agreed to pay $750 million to communities with groundwater affected by so-called “forever chemicals” found in fire-stopping foam, Tyco has reached a tentative settlement with one of its insurance companies.

“…We write jointly on behalf of Tyco Fire Products LP and TIG Insurance Company to inform the Court that Tyco and TIG have reached a settlement-in-principle,” lawyers for Tyco wrote to the federal judge in South Carolina last week. “This settlement-in-principle must be finalized through a formal written agreement, which Tyco and TIG expect to finalize expeditiously.”

The settlement, for an undisclosed amount, is part of a massive, 7,000-plaintiff, multidistrict litigation handled in U.S. District Court in South Carolina. Tyco said the settlement essentially ends its suit against TIG Insurance and several other insurers over pollution exclusions in commercial liability policies.

Tyco in May reached a settlement with six AIG Insurance subsidiaries, and the latest action renders Tyco’s recent motion for partial summary judgment in the case to be “entirely moot,” the letter reads. In March, Tyco settled with Zurich American Insurance Co.

Travelers Casualty and Surety Co. last week asked the court to decide on questions about the extent of coverage provided by excess policies. That issue is still pending.

The TIG settlement is a significant step in resolving part of the compensation question for plaintiffs, but much of the litigation is likely to continue for years. 3M Co., which manufactured some of the compounds used in firefighting foam, announced two years ago that it would stop producing the per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, or PFAS, chemicals by 2025.

Reports have shown that PFAS chemicals can last for centuries and have been shown to cause cancer and other serious health problems in humans. 3M and other manufacturers have already paid several billion dollars in settlements and 3M may end up liable for more than $30 billion before the saga is concluded, Bloomberg news has reported.

In April, Tyco, part of Johnson Controls Inc., agreed to pay $750 million to public water systems across the U.S. that have been contaminated with PFAS chemicals. The funds should be paid out by the end of this year.

BASF, the German chemical company, in May also reached a $317 million settlement with public water systems. Firefighters in Connecticut last month filed suit against 3M, DuPont and Honeywell over allegations that protective gear had been contaminated with the toxic chemicals.

Topics Lawsuits Chemicals