Exposed to asbestos
The votes of thousands of asbestos victims across the country will be counted on 7 September, to decide the fate of their long awaited compensation claims.
A five-year compensation battle by former Turner and Newall (T&N) workers will come to a close when the votes are recorded during a meeting of creditors of Newalls Insulation Limited on Thursday. Many sufferers have already cast their votes by post.
The workers, some of whom now suffer from mesothelioma, were exposed to deadly levels of asbestos every day during their working lives at T&N factories – which included asbestos cement manufacturing, chemicals, engineering, insulation and car components.
Many former T&N employees have died without seeing a penny of their compensation for them or their families.
Compensation offered
Parent company Federal Mogul went into administration in 2001, freezing all compensation payments. But now asbestos victims could finally get their money with some claims worth up to £100,000.
During the summer claimants received a 500-page document from Federal Mogul administrators laying out terms of the latest offer.
Some claimants could share a £36m cash pot allocated for asbestos compensation payments to former T&N workers. It is hoped that some former employees who were exposed to asbestos after 1969 will receive more than 60% of their entitlement, compared to an initial offer by Federal Mogul of only 7%.
Claimants who did not work for T&N, but were exposed to asbestos because they lived near a factory or were related to an employee are expected to receive up to 20% of their compensation.
If the company hadn't gone into administration, sufferers would have received 100% of their compensation.
Ian McFall, head of the asbestos team at Thompsons Solicitors, said: “Thursday is an important day in the fight for compensation for T&N’s asbestos victims. It could bring to an end uncertainty for many families who have been waiting a long time to know the outcome of their claims.”
“If the majority of claimants vote in favour of this scheme they could be receiving payments in the next couple of months.”
Asbestos disease diagnosis? Talk to us for advice and support on how to secure compensation.
If you or a loved one have been diagnosed with an asbestos-related disease, we can support you with advice on how to make a claim.
The process will be explained in plain English and with no obligation – our priority is to provide you with the best, expert advice on whether you have a valid case for compensation, and to signpost you to further sources of support.
There are strict time limits applied to making a claim – usually three years from the date of diagnosis. It doesn’t matter if the exposure to asbestos took place – as it often does – decades ago, the three year time limit applies to the date of knowledge of diagnosis or date of death.
For further information, visit our How to Make A Compensation Claim page.