One Triangle family managed to pay nothing.
Kathy Carlson had a neighbor that had their pipes repaired a year ago for free thanks to a class action lawsuit. She says, "We wondered if we came under the same class action lawsuit. We checked into it and we did."
Carlson, her neighbor, and over 300 thousand homeowners benefited from the $1.1 PB pipe Settlement Fund. Under the terms of the class action settlement, if a polybutylene pipe system has leaked, is leaking now, or leaks in the future, homeowners may quality for a free replacement.
Carlson tells Troubleshooter Diane Wilson, "It's very amazing how fast they are. They're here from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., and they'll have a crew of 2-3 people to cut the sheetrock, repair the pipes, and the second crew comes in and puts new sheetrock in, paints it - you'll never know they were here."
The /*PB*/ pipe systems were installed in over six million homes from 1978 to 1995. The pipes, somewhat flexible and usually grey, can be found in an attic, crawl space, or water heater closet beneath insulation materials.
Tens of thousands of people may be eligible for the free plumbing replacement. The Carlson's are thankful they found out about the opportunity.
Kathy says, "If we had not had it done, I think once we sold the house, five to ten years from now, it would have been to replace the pipes out of our own pocket. That would have been 10-15 thousand dollars."
Homeowners with PB pipe can call the CPRC at 1-800-392-7591 or visit www.pbpipe.com for information about filing a claim and to access claim forms.
Claims must be filed by May 1, 2009 in order to qualify for the free replacement.
