Government measures to speed up compensation for mesothelioma sufferers
20/07/2006
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The Government today outlined a series of measures to help speed up the compensation process for sufferers of mesothelioma.
Work and Pensions Secretary John Hutton outlined the steps in a Ministerial statement.
Plans include closer working with HM Revenue and Customs to trace employers' records more quickly, a helpline which will be set up by the Association of British Insurers, and a claims handling guide.
Claims handlers will be told to give priority to mesothelioma claims, ensuring that sufferers receive priority treatment from the beginning.
The Government has been working with a number of groups including the Association of British Insurers, The Association of Personal Injury Lawyers (APIL), the TUC and the Financial Services Compensation Scheme to develop the measures.
Specialist industrial disease solicitor Adrian Budgen welcomed the plans. He said:
"These proposals are a positive step for mesothelioma sufferers, and follow the considerable progress being made to ensure that victims of mesothelioma get the justice they so urgently require."
"However further measures are needed to ensure that all mesothelioma sufferers receive compensation."
"I also hope that the Department of work and Pensions (DWP) will broaden the scope of the Industrial Injuries Disablement Benefit to include all victims of mesothelioma, so that family members exposed to asbestos dust brought into the home, and people exposed to asbestos dust in their neighbourhood will also receive appropriate help and support," said Adrian.
In June 2006 the House of Lords ruling on Barker, a widow who was denied the full compensation for the death of her husband, paved the way for victims of mesothelioma to be denied access to full compensation unless they were able to successfully sue all of their former employers who exposed them to asbestos.
The Government is currently seeking to reverse the effects of the judgment amendments to the by tabling Compensation Bill.
Mesothelioma is a fatal cancer of the lung lining (the pleura) which develops as a result of inhaling asbestos dust. The average survival from diagnosis is only a year or so.
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