No win no fee claims for asbestos exposure leading to lung disease, asbestosis, mesothelioma and pleural thickening

We are a firm of specialist industrial disease solicitors who offer advice on compensation claims for workers injured following exposure to asbestos.

More people die in Britain from asbestos linked cancer than are killed in road accidents. Up to 2000 people die each year because of related conditions such as mesothelioma.

Find out more about asbestos claim awards and how we can help you obtain the compensation you deserve.

We can advise you on claims arising from employment carried out in key industrial towns such as Manchester, Leeds, Birmingham, Nottingham, Bradford, Hull, Bristol, Cardiff, Newport, Newcastle, Sunderland and the North east.

Background

Asbestos is a naturally occurring mineral and until the 1970s asbestos was extensively used for many different purposes. 

Asbestos was often mixed with other materials as well as being used on its own.  Asbestos has thermal insulation qualities and heat retardant properties and this encouraged its widespread use during most of the 20th century.  It was made into paper, cloth, tape, felt, yarn, millboards, cement, flat sheets and wallboards.  Consequently, materials and components containing asbestos were used throughout industry and also at home. 

Please note: that we have had a number of enquiries from claimants stating that doctors are failing to properly diagnose conditions relating to asbestos. If you or your family have encountered this you may be able to make a claim for medical negligence. Please speak to us if you need an unbiased legal opinion.

For example:

Asbestos was used as an insulating material lagging on pipes and boilers. 

Cloth was used in aprons, curtains, ironing board covers and floor linings. 

Sheets and materials were used extensively in factory buildings, farm buildings and domestic houses, such as asbestos insulation boards, roofing, ceiling tiles, fascia boards and guttering.

Inhaling asbestos dust and fibres can result in suffering serious and sometimes fatal diseases, however the diseases seldom appear until 20 years or more after breathing the asbestos dust. 

The related diseases are:

• Pleural thickening - This is thickening of the lining of the lung and can cause impairment of the functioning of the lung.  Therefore it can result in breathlessness and difficulty breathing.
• Asbestosis - This is fibrosis or scarring of the lungs and this causes increasing breathlessness and coughing.
• Lung disease or cancer - exposure to asbestos can increase the risk of developing lung cancer and can cause lung cancer.
•  Mesothelioma -  This is a fatal cancer of the lining of the lung or abdomen.

The scientific view is that there is no safe level of exposure to asbestos dust.  Related diseases such as mesothelioma can be caused by very low levels of exposure to asbestos dust. 

Read more on symptoms following exposure to asbestos and also asbestos compensation case studies. It is now generally held by the courts that from 1965 onwards employers should have known that exposing their employees to even low levels of asbestos dust created a significant health risk of employees suffering asbestos related cancers and therefore precautions must be taken to avoid exposing employees to asbestos dust.  

Prior to 1965 it was known by employers that dusts in the workplace caused chest diseases and therefore precautions should be taken to avoid employees inhaling dusts.  However, it is generally accepted by courts that before 1965 employers did not know that inhaling only small amounts of asbestos could cause lung cancer.

Health & Safety Video

Watch HSE video on a "Life cut short because of asbestos" http://www.hse.gov.uk/asbestos/campaign/video.htm

We can also help you with accident at work compensation

More information:

Read a detailed summary and background of the law relating to asbestos in the workplace.

In asbestos related disease compensation claims different types of claims can be made depending on the circumstances of the person making the claim. More here on no win no fee asbestos compensation.

A person who has developed pleural thickening or asbestosis may wish to settle his or her claim on a provisional damages basis.  This means that they receive an immediate payment of compensation, however if in the future the respiratory disease caused by the asbestos exposure significantly deteriorates, they can re-open their claim and claim a second sum of compensation from the same defendant.  The sum of compensation for the provisional award is less than if the claim was settled on a full and final basis because of the person’s entitlement to re-start the claim at a later date if there is a significant deterioration in the asbestos related disease.

Useful links: Health & Safety Executive come in for criticism  for increase in deaths at work - Direct Gov - Asbestos related disease statistics from HSE - Use of asbestos in the workplace

Legal advice covering the whole of the UK - including Manchester, Leeds, Birmingham, Nottingham, Bradford, Hull, Bristol, Cardiff, Newport, Liverpool & Merseyside, Newcastle, Sunderland and the North east.