The Company and its subsidiaries face an inherent business risk of exposure to product liability claims arising from the alleged failure of our products to prevent the types of personal injury or death against which they are designed to protect.

Single incident product liability claims. Single incident product liability claims involve incidents of short duration that are typically known when they occur and involve observable injuries, which provide an objective basis for quantifying damages. Management has established reserves for the single incident product liability claims of the Company's various subsidiaries, including asserted single incident product liability claims and incurred but not reported ("IBNR") single incident claims. To determine the reserves, Management makes reasonable estimates of losses for single incident claims based on the number and characteristics of asserted claims, historical experience, sales volumes, expected settlement costs, and other relevant information.

Cumulative trauma product liability claims. Cumulative trauma product liability claims involve alleged exposures to harmful substances (e.g., silica, asbestos and coal dust) that occurred years ago and may have developed over long periods of time into diseases such as silicosis, asbestosis, mesothelioma, or coal worker’s pneumoconiosis. A former subsidiary of the Company, Mine Safety Appliances Company, LLC ("MSA LLC"), which was divested as described below, has been named as a defendant in various lawsuits related to such claims. These lawsuits mainly involve respiratory protection products allegedly manufactured and sold by MSA LLC or its predecessors.

On January 5, 2023, the Company entered into a membership interest purchase agreement (the “Purchase Agreement”) with a joint venture between R&Q Insurance Holdings Ltd. and Obra Capital, Inc. (the "Purchaser"). Under the Purchase Agreement, on January 5, 2023, the Company transferred to the Purchaser all of the issued and outstanding limited liability company interests of MSA LLC (the “Sale”). In connection with the closing, the Company contributed $341.2 million in cash and cash equivalents, while the Purchaser contributed an additional $35.0 million.

As MSA LLC was the obligor for the claims to which the Company's legacy cumulative trauma product liability reserves relate and the policyholder of the related insurance assets, the rights and obligations related to these items remained with MSA LLC when it transferred to the Purchaser's ownership pursuant to the Purchase Agreement. In addition, pursuant to the Purchase Agreement, the Purchaser and MSA LLC have agreed to indemnify the Company and its affiliates for legacy cumulative trauma product liabilities and other product liabilities, and a subsidiary of the Company has agreed to indemnify MSA LLC for all other historical liabilities of MSA LLC. This indemnification is not subject to any cap or time limitation. In connection with the Sale, the Company and its Board of Directors received a solvency opinion from an independent advisory firm that MSA LLC was solvent and adequately capitalized after giving effect to the transaction.

Following the completion of the transaction, the Company no longer has any obligation with respect to pending and future cumulative trauma product liability claims relating to these matters. As such, all legacy cumulative trauma product liability reserves, related insurance assets, and associated deferred tax assets of the divested subsidiary were derecognized from our balance sheet and the Company incurred a tax-effected loss on the divestiture of MSA LLC of $199.6 million, including transaction related costs of $5.6 million. The Purchaser assumed management of the divested subsidiary, including the management of its claims and associated assets.


(In millions)	Year Ended December 31, 2023
Cash and cash equivalents	$	(341.2)
Current insurance receivables	(17.3)
Notes receivable, insurance companies	(5.9)
Noncurrent insurance receivables	(110.3)
Notes receivable, insurance companies, noncurrent	(38.7)
Current product liability	65.1
Noncurrent product liability	324.7
Loss on divestiture of MSA LLC before transaction costs	(123.6)
Transaction costs	(5.6)
Loss on divestiture of MSA LLC	(129.2)
Income tax expense (a)	(70.4)
Tax-effected loss on divestiture of MSA LLC	$	(199.6)
(a) Related to the write-off of deferred tax asset related to product liability reserve

Globe, a subsidiary of the Company, is defending claims in which plaintiffs assert that certain products allegedly containing per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (“PFAS”) have caused harm, including injury or health issues. PFAS are a large class of substances that are widely used in everyday products. Specifically, Globe builds firefighter turnout gear from technical fabrics sourced from a small pool of specialty textile manufacturers. These protective fabrics have been tested and certified to meet current National Fire Protection Association safety standards, and some of them as supplied to Globe contain or historically have contained PFAS to achieve performance characteristics such as water, oil, or chemical resistance.

Globe believes it has valid defenses to these claims. These matters are at a very early stage with numerous factual and legal issues to be resolved. Defense costs relating to these lawsuits are recognized in the Consolidated Statements of Income as incurred. Globe is also pursuing insurance coverage and indemnification related to the lawsuits. As of February 4, 2025, Globe was named as a defendant in approximately 663 lawsuits comprised of about 8,801 claims, predominantly styled as individual personal injury claims and including two putative class actions. Certain of these lawsuits include MSA Safety Inc. or other Globe affiliates as defendants.

MSA LLC is also a defendant in a number of PFAS lawsuits predominantly relating to Aqueous Film-Forming Foam. The Purchaser assumed responsibility for these and any similar future claims specific to MSA LLC, including such claims that have been or may be brought against MSA Safety Inc. or its subsidiaries, under the terms of the Purchase Agreement governing the Company's January 5, 2023, divestiture of MSA LLC. Further information about the transaction can be found in the Company’s Current Report on Form 8-K filed on January 6, 2023.

The Company provides warranties on certain product sales. Product warranty reserves are established in the same period that revenue from the sale of the related products is recognized, or in the period that a specific issue arises as to the functionality of the Company's product. The determination of such reserves requires the Company to make estimates of product return rates and expected costs to repair or to replace the products under warranty.

The amounts of the reserves are based on established terms and the Company's best estimate of the amounts necessary to settle future and existing claims on products sold as of the balance sheet date. If actual return rates and/or repair and replacement costs differ significantly from estimates, adjustments to recognize additional cost of sales may be required in future periods.


	December 31,
(In thousands)	2024		2023		2022
Beginning warranty reserve	$	14,288	$	15,230	$	12,423
Warranty payments	(11,802)		(9,794)		(10,631)
Warranty claims, current	10,684		9,128		14,274
Warranty claims, preexisting	765		(614)		504

Currency translation and other adjustments	(211)		338		(1,340)
Ending warranty reserve	$	13,724	$	14,288	$	15,230