A ruling by the House of Lords on Pleural Plaques not being compensatable has provided enough ammunition to insurers who now are refusing to pay compensation even for asbestosis by citing the ruling.
The perseverance and arguments of Thompsons Solicitors in a recent case finally bore fruit when Ken Morton was compensated by the insurers. Thompsons argued that asbestosis could not be clubbed together with Pleural Plaques and that there was a clear case for compensation in the former.
Ken Morton, 70, was paid an amount of £5,000 by the insurers just days before the trial was set to begin. He was an electrician and worked for Campbell and Isherwood Limited for over 45 years. After retirement, in 2006, he was diagnosed with Asbestosis with partial disability of 2-3 percent.
Thompsons Solicitors found that there was a case of negligence on the part of Morton’s employers. They went on to prove that while working for his employers for thirty years from 1954 to 1983 at various sites across the UK, Ken had been exposed to asbestos due to negligence of the employers. The insurers even after admitting the employers fault refused to pay any compensation taking refuge in the Pleural Plaques ruling.
Paul Finegan from Unite raised an alarm that the attitude of insurers was in using the Pleural Plaque ruling to fend off even genuine work-related injury cases, which could be detrimental to the rights of the workers. He also believed that this practice must be put to an end immediately. The Control of Substances (Hazardous to Health) Regulations set out what employers must do in order to manage the risks associated with the use of hazardous substances; click on COSHH courses for training which will enable you to put together plans to prevent and control these substances so that your business and your employees can work safely.
Speaking in the same vein Joanne Candlish from Thompsons Solicitors also pointed out the negative attitude of insurers toward compensating workers with injuries and illnesses using the ruling of Pleural Plaques as an excuse. She however stated that Morton had been now provided the option to claim further compensation in case his present condition deteriorated or if he contracted a different asbestos related illness.