'Radon Bed Incident' Consumers Lose First Trial in Compensation Lawsuit Against Daejin Bed (Comprehensive)

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Daehyun] Consumers filed a damages lawsuit against Daejin Bed, a mattress manufacturer where the carcinogen radon was detected, but lost in the first trial. The lawsuit was filed in 2018, and it has been about four years since then.

At 2:05 PM on the 9th, Judge Jang Wonji of Civil Division 206 at the Seoul Central District Court announced in the first trial of a damages claim lawsuit worth 138 million KRW filed by 69 radon mattress consumers against Daejin Bed Co., Ltd., "All claims of the plaintiff are dismissed."

The court explained, "It is insufficient to recognize that the defendant knew or failed to fulfill the duty of care by not knowing that the monazite, known to emit negative ions, released radon when manufacturing and selling the mattress, and that the radiation exposure to the human body could be harmful."

The court paid attention to the interim investigation results of the Nuclear Safety and Security Commission, noting that the external exposure dose of the mattress cover products produced in 2015-2016 did not reach the annual safety standard of 1 millisievert (mSv) under the Environmental Radiation Safety Act.

Furthermore, the court added, "The amendment to the Environmental Radiation Safety Act, which prohibits adding radon to products, was only enacted in January 2019, and there is no evidence to prove a causal relationship between the use of radon mattresses and the occurrence of diseases such as lung cancer."

The 'Radon Mattress Incident' refers to the case in May 2018 where a large amount of radon was detected in mattresses sold by Daejin Bed, a small and medium-sized domestic mattress manufacturer. Radon is classified as a Group 1 carcinogen by the World Health Organization (WHO) International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) and is known as a major cause of lung cancer through respiratory exposure.

At that time, the Nuclear Safety and Security Commission investigated one Daejin Bed mattress and announced that the annual external radiation exposure dose was measured at 0.06 millisieverts, which did not reach the safety standard of 1 millisievert set by the Act on the Safety Control of Environmental Radiation.

However, the second investigation measured the annual exposure dose of seven types of Daejin Bed mattresses at 1.59 to 9.35 millisieverts, leading to administrative measures such as product recalls. Subsequently, radon exceeding the standard was detected in products sold by other companies, spreading the controversy.

Meanwhile, the prosecution investigating the case dismissed charges against the CEO of Daejin Bed and related suppliers, stating that it is difficult to conclude a causal relationship between the use of radon mattresses and the occurrence of lung cancer.

Last December, Daejin Bed consumers won a first trial lawsuit over damages for not receiving timely product exchanges or refunds.

At that time, Judge Kim Seonggon of Civil Division 34 at the Seoul Eastern District Court ordered compensation equivalent to the exchange value of the mattress. Judge Kim stated, "Since the defendant promised exchange or refund but did not fulfill it for a long time, the defendant's illegal act and breach of contract are recognized," and "there is an obligation to pay a considerable amount of money corresponding to the market price at the time of the recall agreement."