July 25th, 2007
A former roofer has been awarded over £160,000 in compensation after contracting an asbestos-related cancer and making an asbestos claim against his former employers insurance company.
The man, aged 57, contracted mesothelioma – an asbestos-related cancer which affects the lungs – after being exposed to asbestos over a 20-year period in his roofing job.
As a result, he is now unable to perform even basic household tasks and has been told he has only months to live.
Commenting on the outcome of the case, he said, “Now I know my children will be looked after in the future and I can now pay to have the things done that I can no longer do.”
News of the case follows a second reading in the House of Commons earlier this month for the Child Maintenance and Other Payments Bill, which is intended to fast-track compensation claims from sufferers of asbestos-related cancers.
Sufferers will also be able to claim an interim compensation payment while their case is ongoing.
