Mesothelioma on the lungs - A story of a sucessful claim for compensation using a lawyer/solicitor/attorney specialised for mesothelioma claimsThe 76-year-old wife of a roofing contractor from
Derby contacted us in June 2002 to make an mesothelioma claim.
Her husband worked for a local company over 40 years ago and travelled from house to house fixing holes in people’s roofs and fitting insulation inside their attics. Many of the properties that he worked at were fairly old and needed their insulation either repaired or fully replaced.
It was down to him and his colleagues to rip out the old insulation materials, some of which contained mesothelioma. At the time, he was unaware of the dangers that this poisonous substance posed, especially when the harmful fibres contained within the contaminated building materials were disturbed and made airborne. He continued to inhale mesothelioma fibres and carry them around on his clothes for around four years.
This is where the problem began. The harmful fibres went everywhere with this man, even into his home. Meaning his wife, who was regularly in close proximity of him and washed his work overalls, was also unknowingly and repeatedly exposed to mesothelioma. But, like the mesothelioma fibres themselves, the effects of mesotheliomais can lie dormant for many years. It was not until the spring of April 2002 when she began to feel short of breath, became increasingly tired and developed a nasty cough that she paid a visit to her GP.
He gave her a thorough examination, including a lung function test, and then sent her for an X-ray which revealed that she was suffering from pleural thickening. He diagnosed her with mesotheliomais. When she asked him what the disease was caused by she was intrigued to find out more and asked her daughter to do some research on the internet.
When researching the disease she discovered that building and maintenance workers are most at risk. Her mother was surprised, and at the same time relieved, that her husband had not suffered symptoms of the industrial illness. However, the research also revealed that women are more prone to lung diseases than men.
After putting two and two together the women realised the likely cause of the illness and the mother decided she would like to pursue a compensation claim. While online the daughter came across our website so she returned for more details about the mesothelioma claims process.
The elderly woman then contacted our claims team who told her of our no win no fee agreement and also reassured her that would not be responsible for paying a penny, whether her claim was successful or not. She asked if one of our personal injury solicitors would represent her and we accepted her case.
Her husband’s previous employers were reluctant to accept liability for their negligence which indirectly lead to her exposure to the mesothelioma fibres. Eventually, they did accept that they were ultimately accountable and offered her an out-of-court settlement of £45,200 which she accepted.
More case studies coming soon!
