A-Best Products Asbestos Settlement Trust

About the A-Best Products Settlement Trust

A-Best Products Company was an Ohio-based manufacturer of automotive friction products, primarily brake linings and clutch facings containing chrysotile asbestos. Asbestos was incorporated into friction products because it offered heat resistance, durability, and consistent performance under the intense thermal and mechanical stresses of automotive braking. A-Best's products were sold to automotive repair shops, dealerships, fleet maintenance facilities, and parts distributors throughout the United States from the 1950s through the late 1980s, when asbestos-free friction product alternatives became more widely available.

The workers most at risk from A-Best friction products were automotive mechanics who regularly performed brake service. When mechanics removed worn asbestos brake shoes and drums, they were required to clean accumulated brake dust from the brake drums, backing plates, and wheel cylinders before installing new components. Prior to the adoption of enclosed vacuum systems and wet-cleaning methods, the standard practice was to blow out brake assemblies with compressed air — a process that created dense clouds of asbestos-containing brake dust in the immediate work area. Drum turning and grinding operations produced additional asbestos fiber releases. Clutch replacement, another common service involving asbestos materials, similarly exposed mechanics to asbestos dust during disassembly and component handling.

Over a career spanning decades, an auto mechanic who performed brake and clutch service may have completed thousands of these operations, accumulating substantial total asbestos fiber doses. The latency between asbestos exposure and mesothelioma diagnosis is typically 20 to 50 years, meaning mechanics who performed brake work in the 1960s and 1970s are being diagnosed with mesothelioma today.

As asbestos disease litigation against A-Best Products mounted, the company filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in 1996. The A-Best Products Asbestos Settlement Trust was established in 2003 to resolve all present and future claims from workers injured by exposure to A-Best asbestos friction products. The trust's current payment percentage of 18% translates to approximately $32,400 for mesothelioma claimants, and is typically filed alongside claims against other friction product manufacturers' trusts as part of a comprehensive automotive exposure claim.

Trust Fund Details

Note: Payment percentages may be adjusted by the trustee over time. Actual payments vary based on documentation and review pathway. Consult an asbestos attorney for current figures.

Who Is Eligible to File an A-Best Settlement Trust Claim?

Eligibility requires showing that you were exposed to asbestos from A-Best Products friction products and that you have a qualifying asbestos-related disease. The following workers are the most common eligible claimants:

• Automotive mechanics who regularly performed brake replacement and repair on passenger vehicles, light trucks, and heavy vehicles using A-Best brake linings
• Brake service specialists at dealerships, independent shops, and brake specialty chains who installed or ground A-Best friction products
• Fleet maintenance mechanics at bus companies, trucking operations, municipalities, and corporate vehicle fleets where A-Best products were used
• Clutch repair technicians who removed and installed A-Best asbestos clutch facings on trucks, heavy equipment, and industrial vehicles
• Parts store employees who handled, cut, or fabricated A-Best friction products at automotive parts supply operations
• Automotive dismantlers and salvage workers who handled vehicles with A-Best brake assemblies during disassembly operations
• Industrial equipment mechanics who serviced heavy machinery, construction equipment, and agricultural equipment using A-Best friction components
• Railroad mechanics and car shop workers who worked on railroad car and locomotive braking systems using asbestos friction products
• Secondary exposure claimants — family members exposed to asbestos dust carried home on mechanics' clothing

A-Best friction products containing asbestos were widely sold through the 1950s, 1960s, 1970s, and into the 1980s. Workers who regularly used these products during this period and who have since been diagnosed with mesothelioma, asbestosis, or related conditions may file a claim regardless of when the diagnosis occurred, subject to applicable state statutes of limitations.

How to File an A-Best Settlement Trust Claim

The A-Best Trust claim is processed through the trust's independent administrator. An asbestos attorney handles the process on contingency — you owe no fees unless compensation is recovered.

1. Consult an asbestos attorney experienced in automotive friction product claims. Automotive mechanic mesothelioma cases involve a specific exposure analysis different from industrial exposure cases. Choose an attorney familiar with brake and clutch product trust claims and the multiple trusts that may apply to your work history.
2. Obtain and organize your medical diagnosis records. The trust requires a confirmed diagnosis of mesothelioma or another qualifying asbestos disease. Pathology reports, oncology records, physician affidavits, and imaging studies all support the medical component of your claim.
3. Document your use of A-Best products. Your attorney will help you establish that you worked with A-Best friction products specifically. Employment records from your garage or dealership, witness statements from co-workers, records of parts purchases, and your own detailed recollection of products used at specific shops are all relevant evidence.
4. Your attorney prepares and submits the claim. The A-Best Trust claim form is prepared using the trust's standardized TDP forms, assembled with all supporting medical and exposure documentation, and submitted to the trust's administrator.
5. Select your review pathway. Expedited Review is most common for mesothelioma claimants seeking efficient resolution. Individual Review may be elected if circumstances warrant a higher payment, but the additional time and cost are rarely justified for claims at this payment level.
6. Trust reviews and approves the claim. The trust administrator evaluates the submission for compliance with TDP eligibility criteria. Approved mesothelioma claims are paid at the current 18% rate.
7. Receive payment. Approved mesothelioma claims receive approximately $32,400. Combined with simultaneous claims against other friction product trusts and potential civil litigation, the total recovery can be substantially higher.

Can You File Other Claims at the Same Time?

Yes — and for automotive mechanics, filing multiple simultaneous trust claims is essential because exposure came from many different brake and clutch manufacturers. A career in automotive service typically involved working with products from Bendix, Raybestos, Pneumo Abex, Carlisle, Wagner, and numerous other friction product manufacturers in addition to A-Best. Each manufacturer that produced asbestos friction products and subsequently filed for bankruptcy has its own trust, and your work history may support claims against multiple friction product trusts simultaneously.

Beyond friction product trusts, automotive mechanics were also exposed to asbestos from gaskets, clutch components, engine insulation, and other vehicle parts from different manufacturers — some of which have their own trusts. Civil litigation against companies that remain financially solvent and have not entered bankruptcy is also possible if your exposure history includes their products. An experienced asbestos attorney will conduct a thorough exposure analysis based on your complete work history and identify every available source of compensation, which for career automotive mechanics can total hundreds of thousands of dollars across all trust claims and litigation combined.

Frequently Asked Questions