Personal injury advice from
Thompsons Solicitors
New Support Scheme To Compensate Mesothelioma Victims
25th July 2012
Our solicitors, together with asbestos support groups and trade unions, have campaigned for an insurance fund of last resort to compensate the victims of industrial diseases and industrial injuries who cannot trace their employers’ liability insurance.
A new scheme has now been agreed by the Government and the Association of British Insurers (ABI), but it will only compensate some victims of mesothelioma.
Mesothelioma
Mesothelioma is a fatal form of cancer which most commonly affects the membrane surrounding the lungs and is caused by exposure to asbestos.
The disease takes many years to develop, by which time the employer responsible for the asbestos exposure may no longer exist.
Compensation Scheme
The scheme will only be available to people diagnosed with mesothelioma on or after 25th July 2012, who were exposed to asbestos at work and for whom a liable employer's insurer cannot be traced. It could also take 2 years for the scheme to be implemented, meaning that some people diagnosed over the coming months may not benefit within their lifetime.
Although the new scheme will help some people with mesothelioma who would otherwise be unable to claim it excludes victims of other asbestos-related diseases, anyone diagnosed with mesothelioma before 25 July 2012, and people suffering from other work-related injuries or conditions.
The scheme is expected to pay out around £300m compensation to 3,000 mesothelioma victims over the first 10 years.
Tom Jones, a partner at Thompsons Solicitors, said: “While we welcome any initiative to provide compensation for mesothelioma sufferers who cannot trace the liability insurers of their former employers, the government's announcement is a sop to the insurance industry.
“By limiting the scheme to mesothelioma, 50% of asbestos victims - those with asbestosis, pleural thickening and asbestos-related lung cancer - will remain uncompensated.”
Industrial Disease Advice
If you or a member of your family has been affected by a work-related illness, our lawyers may be able to help you. With specialist knowledge of the laws relating to industrial diseases, we can provide expert guidance and assistance with making your compensation claim.
It may also be possible to make a posthumous claim for a family member who has died from an industrial illness. Contact us on 0800 0328511 for sympathetic, cost free advice. Alternatively, complete a claim enquiry form online and we will contact you.
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