An industrial disease specialist, employed by Irwin Mitchell, settled a case for the sum of £245,000 for a man who had been exposed to asbestos in previous employment which sadly resulted in his diagnosis of mesothelioma, a terminal form of cancer caused by exposure to asbestos.

Our client was diagnosed with mesothelioma on 7 March 2012 when he was only 64 years old. Before he started to develop symptoms arising from the mesothelioma, he ran his own business, but sadly had to stop work due to the effects of the disease.

Our client began his employment with AH Guest Limited (now known as Hall and Tawse Western Limited) in 1966, working as an apprentice carpenter and joiner. During his employment with this company he recalls being regularly exposed to asbestos. He frequently had to box in pipes, create soffits for buildings and frames to be fitted around fire proof doors, using asbestos sheets for fire and heat protection purposes. Cutting the asbestos sheets caused substantial quantities of asbestos dust and fibres to be released into his working environment. He was also present when asbestos lagging was mixed to be applied to pipes in a boiler room. Our client was never warned of the dangers of being exposed to asbestos by his employer.

In 1968 our client began working for George Wimpey & Co Limited (now known as Carillion Construction (Contracts) Limited). He was employed as a finishing carpenter, and as in his previous job, he used asbestos sheets to box in pipes, to line airing cupboards and for bath panels.

Our client’s symptoms date back to 2011, when he began to have trouble breathing and felt extremely lethargic. Following a number of investigations, including chest x-ray, CT scan and a biopsy, his diagnosis of mesothelioma was confirmed. 

He instructed Irwin Mitchell to pursue a claim for negligence against his former employers. We urgently investigated the claim and successfully secured agreement from his former employers that our client had been negligently exposed to asbestos during the course of his employment.

Hayley Hill, Associate and workplace injuries specialist at our Birmingham office, acted for the client and said: “Although the compensation paid by his former employers will not restore the effects that the negligence has had on his life, the compensation will help our client provide for his family in the future. We were extremely pleased to be able to give him that peace of mind through the successful conclusion of his claim during his lifetime and without the need to commence Court proceedings”.

Our expert asbestos claims team will provide you with free initial advice on your compensation claim if you or a loved one has suffered due to contracting mesothelioma. See our Mesothelioma Claims page for more information.

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