Expert Asbestos-Related Disease Lawyers Investigating Working Conditions At Two Lift Companies

The heartbroken family of a former lift engineer from Cambridge is appealing to his former workmates for help after he died from mesothelioma, a terminal cancer caused by exposure to asbestos decades before symptoms began to appear.

Anthony Charles White, from Elsworth, Cambridge died from the disease in May 2015 aged just 68 after a short battle with the disease.

Now, his widow Irene, age 69, known to her friends and family and as Gill, and his two children Heidi and Hannah have instructed expert asbestos-related disease lawyers at Irwin Mitchell to investigate how and where Anthony was exposed to the asbestos that caused him to develop mesothelioma.

Before his death, he told them that he believed he was exposed to asbestos during his career as a lift engineer, specifically during his employment with Maryatt & Scott Ltd, between 1963 and 1969, and later during his time with Schindler’s Lifts Limited, from 1968 until 1988.

Anthony told his family that during his apprenticeship with Maryatt & Scott Ltd he was often required to do the dusty and dirty work, which required him to crawl into the lift shafts. He recalled that asbestos was commonly used to insulate electrics at this time and that the working environment was extremely dusty.

After his apprenticeship he joined Platt Shindler’s Lifts Limited and was primarily based at Cambridge’s Addenbrooke’s Hospital during his 20 years working for the firm. Before his death, Anthony told his legal team at Irwin Mitchell he was regularly required to maintain and repair the lifts at the hospital.

He said he would regularly change the brake linings of the lifts and that the work would be extremely dusty and dirty. Anthony said he was never advised of the dangers of asbestos dust and the risks it posed to his health.

Rosemary Giles, a Partner and expert asbestos-related disease lawyer at Irwin Mitchell, representing Anthony’s family, said:

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“Sadly, in our work we regularly come across cases like Anthony’s, where people are diagnosed with this extremely aggressive disease long after they have finished working.

“We are determined to help provide Anthony’s family with the answers they need about their husband, father and grandfather’s exposure to asbestos and if more could and should have been done to warn him of the dangers of asbestos and to prevent inhaling the deadly substance.

“We would like to hear from anyone who recalls working alongside Anthony at Maryatt & Scott Ltd in the mid to late 1960s and those who worked with him at Platt Shindler’s Lifts Limited, which later became Schindler’s Lifts Limited, between 1968 and 1988.

“Anyone with information on the warnings provided to employees about the dangers of asbestos, the protective equipment, if any, made available to workers or the working conditions at the firms should contact us as soon as possible to help Anthony’s widow Gill, his daughters and his grandchildren get the answers they deserve.” Rosemary Giles - Partner

Anthony’s widow Gill said: “Anthony’s diagnosis came as a complete shock to all of us and it was terrible to see him in so much pain and how much he had to struggle to do a number of everyday tasks.

“We have been left absolutely heartbroken by his death and we now want to find out if more should have been done, by the companies he dedicated most of his working life to, to protect him from the dangers of asbestos.

“We hope that those who worked alongside him at Schindler’s Lifts and during his apprenticeship at Maryatt & Scott Ltd will come forward and provide the information we need to ensure we get justice in his name.”

Anyone with information on working conditions at Maryatt & Scott Ltd and Shindler’s Lifts Limited should contact Rosemary Giles on 01223 791 810 or email Rosemary.Giles@IrwinMitchell.com.

If you or a loved one has been diagnosed with mesothelioma as a result of exposure to asbestos, our expert mesothelioma lawyers could help you claim compensation. See our Asbestos-Related Disease Claims Guide for more information.