Just when it seems as if things cannot get any worse regarding the Chinese drywall problem in Florida, the next chapter opens up to more bad news, though this news seems more incredulous than just plain “worse.” Seems that the Tianjin, China drywall company at the center of the storm, the Knauf Plasterboard Tianjin Co. LTD., is claiming they don’t have any insurance. From a story at MSNBC:
On the legal side of things, there is some bad news. Builders learned that Chinese drywall manufacturer Knauf does not have insurance.
“I have a letter back from that one company – and there are other manufacturers – that says they didn’t have insurance. That doesn’t mean we won’t find somebody else responsible that did,” said Geoff Gentile of the Boyle and Gentile Law Firm.
Knauf Plasterboard Tianjin is part of Knauf, a German multinational supplier of building materials with a worldwide presence in 58 countries. No insurance? Right. And I’m posting this blog entry from Mars where I’m sitting with Manny Ramirez passing one back and forth, wondering where we’re gonna find some water and a better contract than the LA Dodgers waved in his face.
One of these days this is going to become a real story on this side of the Pacific. No insurance. That ought to do it. Nahhh. Still no dead pets or small kids with kidney stones.
15 responses so far ↓
1 Chinesedrywall // Mar 2, 2009 at 7:16 am
Knauf Plasterboard Tianjin Co. LTD. claims it has no insurance, but its parent company, Knauf, a German supplier who does business in 58 countries, surely does. Whether Knauf has insurance or not, however, it has significant assets and is collectible.
2 Jim Gourley // Mar 2, 2009 at 7:28 am
Figured as much. That was the point of my sarcasm.
3 Tom // Mar 24, 2009 at 8:49 pm
Knauf Plasterboard Tianjin may not have insurance, but I’m betting that the Chinese government has a bullet with somebody’s name on it! It’s just a matter of time and loss of face.
4 Jim Gourley // Mar 25, 2009 at 12:17 pm
Not yet they don’t, Tom. This is still a non-story here. The local foreign media has stayed away from it, though not from ignorance of the problem. I’ve been writing about it for two-and-a-half months. There were some words by Time on one of their blogs a couple of days back, but that has been about it. WSJ has covered it in the States, but, to my knowledge, their folks here have not. As everywhere there are politics involved with how the foreign media covers news here, though I am not privy to what the rules are. With some stories there seems to be no advantage to getting out ahead on it. It’s as if it must reach some level of outside noise before it becomes fair game to cover it here. I am speaking here of the foreign media, not the Chinese state-controlled media. If it were up to them they’d not report anything more than what the leaders had for breakfast. (“Another products scandal! Keep that buried.”) The fact is, if it is a problem in FL, it must also be a problem here, somewhere. But nobody’s talking.
5 Amy // Mar 27, 2009 at 11:29 pm
I live in Louisiana and people are experiencing symptoms here that could be related to the drywall manufactured in China. Several of these people live in my neighborhood. I just looked at my drywall in the attic and it reads “Knauf Tianjin China-ATSM”. I am not experiencing any issues at this time – my copper coils and pipes appear to be copper, my jewelry is not tarnished, I am not experiencing headaches or nosebleeds. I guess my question is – how do we know what makes it toxic? Did some of the drywall have weather or chemical influence after made and before used? My home was built 2+ years ago and I have lived here for 1.5 years. I am still researching, but any thoughts and tips would be greatly appreciated.
6 Jim Gourley // Mar 27, 2009 at 11:56 pm
Amy, all I can suggest is that you do a Google news search on “chinese drywall problem” and you will get a lot of hits. Nearly all of the problem seems to be in Florida, and the state health department has been trying to figure this one out too. To the best of my knowledge there is no definitive answer on this yet, though some people have had their drywall replaced by their home builder. I do not think that builders would be replacing drywall if there wasn’t a problem. It could also be the case that just because it is from Knauf Tianjin does not necessarily mean that it is toxic. You aren’t having any problems, so that’s a good sign. But look towards Florida, especially in the Fort Myer area.
7 Marcia Lindenschmidt // Apr 2, 2009 at 10:24 am
I am looking at a house in Slidell La, that was under water for some time during the storm surge (Katrina), and the water smells like sulfur but the copper is unblemished. The name on the drywall is National Gypsum Co. Do any of you know if that company used Knauf drywall or not?
8 Michael Lassig // Apr 27, 2009 at 10:13 pm
The fact that the product was imported will complicate suing the manufacturer. When they say they dont have insurance they may mean their policy doesn’t cover suits brought in the United States. This might mean problems for building material distributers and installers because they would have coverage. The attorneys will target those with coverage.
9 Brad Dickler // May 6, 2009 at 12:12 am
Marcia,
National Gypson is a US mfg of dry wall.
10 Marcia Lindenschmidt // Jun 1, 2009 at 5:08 am
I have since learned that Natl. Gypsum ran out of their own drywall during the big reconstruction process after Katrina and Rita. They then bought it from Knauf. Also, my husbands brother, who runs and owns a refinishing company says that everyone has known about this for some time, and that when tested, 50% was gypsum, and 50% was ‘other’. He laughed and said that China had had a problem with toxins produced in other areas of work, so they filled in the drywall with these toxins in order to get rid of them. He thought it was funny. I did not.
11 A Thomas // Jul 9, 2009 at 10:55 am
Whether the Manufacturer has insurance, or not, may not matter. Whomever imported the material, or had it made under contract for delivery is going to prove to be just as, if not more liable than the Chinese factory, and probably even more collectable. If it turns out that Knauf (parent co.) arranged for the sale of the product, then they’ll be on the hook.
12 Robert Gary // Jul 18, 2009 at 2:58 am
Marcia what information do you have available on the Knauf Chinese drywall connection? Has your husbands brother ever seen a drywall board labeled “Knauf National Gypsum.” Your posting makes a very important connection if it can be substantiated.
13 Brenda // Jul 18, 2009 at 6:28 am
We have American defective drywall that is causing the same problem that the Chinese drywall is causing. Watch my story on
http://www.CBSNews.com “Bad Drywall Rots New Home” Most of the drywall in our home is National Gypsum & a few boards is from US Gypsum. If you know anyone that is having the same problem let me know!
14 Jonathan // Jul 18, 2009 at 10:01 pm
I just discovered that my house has chinese drywall. The house is 3 years old. I’ve bought it less than a year ago. Since then I have replaced 5 evaporator coils. The coils were black, and corroded to the point of leaking freon. After a battle with the a/c man, distributor and manufacturer, each one of us researched the problem. I went in the attic and read the back of the sheetrock- Knauf-Tianjin,China -. I googled “Knauf” and there it was, the story of all the problems I have been experiencing.
The question is ” Do I spend another $ 150,000 to replace drywall, wiring, plumbing, appliances, etc. or just foreclose and let the bank deal with it ?”
Imagine if the other (100,000 plus) homeowners with bad drywall decided to foreclose. With some home values declining up to 50% or more, why would they fix it. What will that do to the economic recovery?
15 Chinese Drywall // Jan 29, 2010 at 10:12 am
Chinese drywall is a huge issue. I don’t know that insurance would be capable of covering the issues at the level we are seeing.
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