Forests, Formaldehyde and … Faxes? Lumber Liquidators in Trouble Again

Oh, Lumber Liquidators. You’re not having a very good year, are you? Formaldehyde levels in certain Chinese wood flooring products led to a federal investigation and legal action against the company – and from that, accusations that the wood in certain Lumber Liquidators products came from protected areas of the world. Specifically, the Environmental Investigation Agency alleged that illegally sourced wood from areas in the Russian Far East had made its way into wooden flooring sold in the United States, with The Wall Street Journalreporting that the wood came from areas home to the Siberian tiger. It’s a lot to take in – but surely it’s all uphill from here?

Stonecrafters claims that the unwanted faxes waste time and office supplies, and are looking for $500 per violation.

No.

The company is facing yet another new and exciting lawsuit – this time under the Telephone Consumer Protection Act – amid allegations that it has sent unsolicited faxes as part of an advertising campaign in violation of federal law.

We’ve written several times about companies that have fallen foul of the TCPA, but it’s still surprising that so many do – the law is pretty clear on what is and isn’t permitted. Have customers opted in to receiving communications? Have they said so in writing? Then send away! Are you missing that key written permission? Then don’t call. Don’t write. Don’t fax, for goodness’ sake. Nothing’s quite so damning as having the evidence provided for you in an easily printable format. Sadly, Lumber Liquidators seem to have missed the memo – ironic, since they’re clearly such fans of sending and receiving mail.

The suit’s been filed in Illinois federal court and accuses the company of failing to include opt-out language in advertisements sent via fax to customers earlier this year (a requirement of the TCPA). The plaintiff, Stonecrafters Inc., claims that Lumber Liquidators should have known the correct procedure to follow, and that without permission to send the faxes, they were violating the TCPA since no business relationship existed between the two companies. Stonecrafters claims that the unwanted faxes waste time and office supplies, and are looking for $500 per violation. They also want the class to include every recipient of a faxed Lumber Liquidators advertisement that didn’t have an opt-out notice included, going back four years.

It’ll be up to the judge to decide on the case’s merits, but the requirements companies must meet are rarely simple. The TCPA, updated to include more modern communication, has fixed penalties for every violation, and since evidence is often plentiful, companies that have broken the law may find themselves faced with hefty bills – and a good reason to be more careful next time.