Supreme Court recognizes the liability of humidifier disinfectant manufacturers for the first time

The Supreme Court ruled that humidifier disinfectant manufacturers should compensate victims for damages. This was the first Supreme Court decision to recognize the civil liability of manufacturing and sales companies to victims. This opened the door for Level-3 victims, who are seen to have a weak causal relationship between the use of the disinfectants and the development of pulmonary diseases, to seek compensation from manufacturers.

On November 9, Petty Bench 1 of the Supreme Court (presiding justice, Rho Tae-ak) affirmed the ruling that partially sided with the plaintiff in a final appeal hearing that Gim (Kim) sought against the manufacturing and sales company, Oxy Reckitt Benckiser (Oxy), and the supplier, Hanbit Chemical.

Gim used Oxy’s humidifier disinfectant from November 2007 until April 2011. She developed a cough and other symptoms, and in May 2013 was diagnosed with interstitial lung disease. In 2014, an investigation by the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) categorized her as Level-3, claiming that the likelihood of the sterilizer causing her pulmonary disease was small.

Level-3 means that the impact of exposure to the sanitizer cannot be ruled out, but when considering other causes, the likelihood of the sanitizer inducing the lung disease is low. Government support primarily focused on Level-1 (almost certainly sterilizer-induced lung disease) and 2 (likely to be sterilizer-induced) victims, and Level-3 and 4 (unlikely) victims were initially excluded. Oxy paid compensations of nearly 360 billion won just to Level-1 and 2 victims from 2016 until 2020.

In 2015, Gim filed a claim for damages against Oxy and Hanbit Chemical. She argued, “They displayed the phrase, ‘safe for human use,’ while selling a humidifier disinfectant containing polyhexamethylene guanidine (PHMG), a toxic chemical.”

Her argument was not accepted in the first trial. But in the second trial, the bench acknowledged problems in the product design and labeling and ruled that Oxy was liable for reparation. However, the court set the amount of compensation at five million won, considering that the state had recognized Gim’s eligibility for state compensation in 2018 and had been paying her 970,000 won every month.

“The particles of PHMG, the main substance in the humidifier sanitizer, are extremely small, so they are not filtered out by the nose and settle deep in the alveoli,” explained the bench in the second trial, adding, “Defects existed in the design and labeling of the sanitizers manufactured and sold by the defendants, and as a result, the plaintiff suffered physical damage.” The bench cited the fact that the manufacturer displayed the phrase, ‘safe for children’ on the product, failing to properly inform consumers of the harmful effects of the product as one of the grounds for its decision.

The Supreme Court denied any misinterpretation of the law in the lower court’s decision. “The investigation by the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency, which resulted in the plaintiff’s Level-3 classification, was only a decision on the possibility of sanitizer-induced lung diseases centered on the terminal bronchiole. In the claim for damages, the ruling was based on the premise that the existence of a causal relationship between the use of the humidifier disinfectant and the outbreak or deterioration of a disease could differ according to the specific proof presented by the person who used the disinfectant,” explained the Supreme Court. In other words, in a claim for damages, the causal relationship must be determined separately from the KDCA’s decision.

The latest Supreme Court decision will make it more likely for companies that manufactured and sold humidifier disinfectants to compensate Level-3 and 4 victims for damages. Reportedly, these victims have filed several claims for damages seeking assistance. According to the Ministry of Environment, as of 2017, 208 people were classified as Level-3 victims of humidifier disinfectants and 1,541 as Level-4.

Gim said, “Aside from the amount, I think it is significant that the Supreme Court recognized the responsibility of the companies that inflicted harm. I wanted to give up after the first trial, but for the sake of the other Level-3 victims, I didn’t want to leave the situation with a defeated ruling, and that’s how I came all the way to the Supreme Court.” She added, “I hope this decision will make companies feel guilty and be more responsible to their consumers.”