Bondex International
Bondex produced joint cements, joint compounds, and other building materials that often contained asbestos until 1977. The company’s use of asbestos led to several asbestos lawsuits, forcing Bondex into bankruptcy and the creation of an asbestos trust to compensate victims exposed to its products.
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Bondex International History of Asbestos Use
Bondex International began as a small brand in St. Louis, Missouri in 1959. The building products were a success among those in the construction industry and those looking to complete do-it-yourself projects. The fast-growing brand caught the eye of Republic Powdered Metals, which specialized in protective coatings and other industrial maintenance products. Bondex’s parent company Reardon Co. was purchased by Republic Powdered Metals, now known as RPM Inc. in 1966. This acquisition gave RPM Inc. control of Bondex, which was the Ohio-based company’s first foray into more consumer-focused products.
Additionally, Bondex was the company’s first acquisition. RPM Inc. would continue to acquire smaller companies including Rust-Oleum Corporation and DAP Products Inc. in an effort to increase its presence in the building materials market. Some of the companies they acquired were also known to have included asbestos in their products. Bondex used asbestos in their products before, throughout their acquisition and into 1981. DAP also used asbestos in its products until 1977.
Unfortunately, Bondex’s decades-long asbestos use exposed countless Americans to the toxin, leading to mesothelioma and other asbestos-related diseases. Because of these diagnoses, thousands of people began to file claims against Bondex, leading to their 2010 bankruptcy.
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Bondex Asbestos Personal Injury Trust Fund
The Bondex Asbestos Personal Injury Trust, was formally established under the company’s Chapter 11 reorganization plan, confirmed by the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Delaware. The plan required the trust to be funded with initial cash and additional scheduled payments, totaling approximately $797.5 million, to be paid in installments over four years to compensate current and future asbestos claimants. The Trust began accepting claims on July 1, 2016.
All asbestos trust funds pay a set percentage of each claim filed against it to ensure there are adequate funds for future claimants.
Most Recent Information From Bondex Asbestos Personal Injury Trust
The trust’s year-end 2024 report revealed, as of December 31, 2024:
- Over 970 Bondex Asbestos Personal Injury Trust claims were paid.
- Over 3,360 unliquidated personal injury claims were received by the trust.
- Approximately $26.7 million was paid to asbestos victims by the Bondex asbestos trust.
- Over $781,000 was reported in settled but unpaid claims.
- Approximately $557 million in total assets remain in the trust.
- The trust has received over 123,500 unliquidated claims since it was established.
- Approximately 13,500 Bondex asbestos trust claims have been paid since the inception of the trust.
- Approximately $382.7 million in claim settlements has been paid to asbestos victims since the trust was established.
Current Bondex Asbestos Personal Injury Trust Payment Percentage
The current payment percentage is 29.5% for the Bondex Asbestos Personal Injury Trust. At a payment percentage of 29.5%, the current payout on a Bondex Expedited Review claim for mesothelioma is $23,600.
Determining Review Process When Filing a Bondex Asbestos Personal Injury Trust Claim
An experienced asbestos lawyer will evaluate the injured party’s case to determine the appropriate review process when submitting a Bondex asbestos trust claim. A sample of Bondex claims filed between 2022 and 2024 indicated that approximately 100% of claims were filed under the Individual Review (IR) process and 0% of claims were filed under the Expedited Review (ER) process.
- Expedited Review Process: Bondex claims filed under the ER process will have a streamlined review from the trust based on the medical and exposure requirements outlined in the Trust Distribution Procedures. Approved claims will receive the standard scheduled value based on the diagnosed disease level.
- Individual Review Process: Filing Bondex claims using the IR process may result in receiving a higher payment. Exposure, medical, and personal records submitted with these claims undergo a thorough evaluation to determine an individual liquidated value. IR filing is required for certain lung cancer cases, secondary exposure, or when standard trust criteria aren’t met.
The trust is currently active and accepts claims to compensate asbestos victims with payments dependent on factors such as age, diagnosis, exposure history and the law firm’s settlement history. If you or a loved one had exposure to Bondex products and believe you are entitled to compensation, learn how a mesothelioma lawyer can help.
Bondex International Asbestos Products
Bondex International made asbestos-containing products beginning in 1959. These products were produced under both Reardon Co. and RPM Inc. Asbestos was a known carcinogen as early as the 1920s. However, Bondex and its parent companies continued to use the cheap additive through the 1980s.
Asbestos is known to have been included in Bondex’s joint compound, texture paint, topping cement and roof cement, among others.
| Product Name | Start Year | End Year |
|---|---|---|
| Bondex “Stays White” Mobile Home Roof Coating | 1972 | 1981 |
| Bondex All Purpose Joint Cement | 1976 | |
| Bondex Aluminum Roof Coating | ||
| Bondex Block Filler and Primer | 1977 | |
| Bondex Bondek Black Mastic | 1969 | 1981 |
| Bondex Bondek Roof Cement | 1969 | 1981 |
| Bondex Bondek Roof Coating | 1969 | 1981 |
| Bondex Bontone Fibred Masonry Coating | 1974 | |
| Bondex Cook’s Lifeline All Purpose Texture Joint and Topping Cement | 1977 | |
| Bondex Dramex Ready Mixed Interior Finish | 1977 | |
| Bondex Dramex Ready Mixed Textured Paint | 1977 | |
| Bondex Dramex Spanish Texturing Paint | 1977 | |
| Bondex Dramex Texture Paint | 1977 | |
| Bondex F.O. Pierce Dramex | 1977 | |
| Bondex Formula 1031 | ||
| Bondex Handy Patch All Purpose Patcher | ||
| Bondex Heavy Duty Liquid Aluminum Roof Coating | ||
| Bondex Hi & Dri Topping Cement | 1977 | |
| Bondex Joint Cement | 1977 | |
| Bondex Joint Compound | 1977 | |
| Bondex Metro Spanish Texture Paint (NYC only) | 1977 | |
| Bondex Metro Texturing (NYC only) | 1977 | |
| Bondex Mobil Home Aluminum Roof Coating | ||
| Bondex Multi-Patch | 1977 | |
| Bondex NPD All Purpose Joint Cement | 1977 | |
| Bondex Penncraft Block Filler | 1977 | |
| Bondex Penncraft Water Putty | 1977 | |
| Bondex Perma-Plastic | 1969 | 1981 |
| Bondex Permaroof | 1969 | 1981 |
| Bondex Pre-Mixed Joint Cement | 1977 | |
| Bondex Reardon’s All Purpose Joint Topping and Texture Paint | 1977 | |
| Bondex Reardon’s Block Filler and Primer | 1977 | |
| Bondex Reardon’s Handy Patch All Purpose Patcher | ||
| Bondex Reardon’s SX Topping Cement | 1977 | |
| Bondex Reardon’s Water Putty | 1977 | |
| Bondex SX Topping Cement | 1977 | |
| Bondex Trax Topping Cement | 1977 | |
| Bondex Trax, Texture Paint | 1977 | |
| Bondex Wards Texture | 1977 | |
| Bondex Wards Wood Putty | 1977 | |
| Bondex Water Putty (Wood Putty) | 1977 |
In addition to the Bondex brand name, Bondex International asbestos products were sold at:
- Reardon
- Trax
- Dramex
- Wards (through Montgomery Ward retailers)
- Penncraft (through J.C. Penny retailers)
Did You Know?
Mesothelioma victims may be eligible for compensation from more than one asbestos trust fund.
Filing a claim with one trust does not impact your eligibility for compensation from another trust fund.
Bondex International and Occupational Exposure
Bondex International was initially conceived as a do-it-yourself brand aimed at homeowners for repair jobs. However, the asbestos-containing products have also been the source of occupational asbestos exposure.
All employees working on the manufacture of Bondex brand products may have been exposed to asbestos during their regular job duties. Construction workers, including drywall tapers, masons and others, may have also used the asbestos-containing products while at their jobsites.
Today, demolition and construction workers may still be exposed to Bondex asbestos products when working on older homes, schools and public buildings.
- Construction workers
- Demolition workers
- Drywall tapers
- Factory workers
- Masons
- Roofers
Asbestos Litigation Against Bondex International
RPM Inc. started having asbestos-related litigation issues in the 1980s. In 2003, these asbestos claims depleted their insurance policy. Prior to 2003, RPM Inc.’s insurance was able to cover approximately 90% of its Bondex asbestos-related costs.
In the years that followed the end of the insurance payments, RPM Inc. was drowning in asbestos-related expenses. From 2005 through 2009, Bondex and Specialty Products Holding Corp, one of the other RPM subsidiaries that used asbestos, had asbestos costs between $60 million and $82 million each year. In 2000, when insurance was still making payments, they spent only $8.2 million on their asbestos litigation costs.
- In 2009, William Willis was awarded $2 million after developing an asbestos-related disease due to Bondex products.
- Willis completed home repairs with Bondex asbestos-containing products between the 1960s and 1980s.
- He and his wife received compensation for loss of normal life, pain and suffering, emotional distress and loss of consortium.
In 2010, without the assistance of the insurance payments, the burden of the asbestos-related costs led RPM Inc. to file Chapter 11 bankruptcy for its Bondex unit. At the time of filing, there were more than 10,000 asbestos lawsuits filed against Bondex International. That same year, a chief executive for RPM Inc. said they had paid out more than $600 million to Bondex asbestos victims in the previous eight years alone.
Bondex’s bankruptcy filing set up an asbestos trust fund to pay victims. The trust fund takes liability away from Bondex International’s parent company, RPM Inc.
Questions About Filing a Claim Against Bondex International? Ask experienced mesothelioma advocate Jennifer Lucarelli Ask a Question
Sources
Bonds News. UPDATE 1-Asbestos claims lead RPM Int’l units to bankruptcy. Reuters. June 2010.
Claims Processing Facility Inc. Bondex Trust Begins Accepting Claim Filings. News. July 2016.
Claims Processing Facility, Inc. Bondex Trust Facts. Bondex Trust.
Funding Universe. RPM, Inc. Company History. Company Profiles.
Hals T. RPM reaches $797.5 million deal to resolve Bondex asbestos claims. Reuters. July 2014.
HarrisMartin Publishing. Jury Finds for CertainTeed and GP, Enters $2 Million Verdict Against Bondex. Courtroom News. August 2009.
Securities and Exchange Commission. RPM International Inc. Division of Corporation Finance.
Financial Assistance for Mesothelioma Patients
Tara Strand specializes in writing content about mesothelioma and asbestos. She focuses on topics like mesothelioma awareness, research, treatment, asbestos trust funds and other advocacy efforts.
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Jennifer Lucarelli
Mesothelioma Lawyer and Legal Advisor
For more than two decades, Jennifer Lucarelli has served as Legal Advisor at Mesothelioma.com. She has advocated for more than 1,000 asbestos victims, securing millions in settlements and helping them access quality medical care.
