A former Metro Cammell worker was exposed to asbestos during the course of his employment between 1954 and 1985. He started off working for the carriage works as an apprentice vehicle (rail) body maker and finisher before qualifying as a body maker and then went on to become a coach builder working on contracts to build buses destined for Cuba, Glasgow and Hong Kong.
Our client recalls "asbestos was being used in the insulation of the body sides of the coaches. It was a process known as ‘flocking’. The asbestos was in powder form and was supplied in sacks; Men would pour the loose asbestos powder into very large drums. They then mixed it with water and sprayed it onto the inside of the carriages. The mixture looked like paper mache…. There was always lots of asbestos dust floating in the atmosphere. There was very little extraction. We were exposed to asbestos dust fibres when working in the factory almost on a daily basis."
Metro Cammell were the largest rolling stock manufacturers in the West Midlands. The origins of the company began in 1838 with Joseph Wright’s Railway Carriage & Wagon Works and over the next 150 years the company grew with sites across the region, including Saltley and Washwood Heath, employing hundreds of men and women.
Our client was diagnosed with the asbestos related disease asbestosis. Our client was not provided with any respiratory protection and nor was he told of the dangers presented by asbestos materials.
Court proceedings were commenced against Metro Cammell and judgment was entered in favour of our client. The case was successfully settled in favour of our client in August 2011 for a five figure settlement.
Our client’s settlement was achieved by Satinder Bains of Irwin Mitchell's specialist Asbestos Related Disease Team.