Following an earlier Court of Appeal ruling the trade union Unite are all set to challenge the decision reached limiting compensation payouts to the families of cancer victims.

Asbestos Removal, Asbestos Management, Asbestos Contractors, Asbestos Disposal

The trade union Unite is set to challenge a recent ruling by the Court of Appeal concerning victims of asbestos-related cancer and their right to compensation .

The Court of Appeal decided in October that employer’s liability insurance was triggered not by the exposure to asbestos in the workplace but by the development of mesothelioma in some cases.

It ruled that symptoms of mesothelioma only started many years after the asbestos dust had been inhaled by the victims, and may result in thousands of workers in the UK who have since developed the disease losing out on compensation. However, Unite is set to challenge the ruling in the Supreme Court.

Mesothelioma, a cancer of the lung caused by asbestos exposure, has no known cure, with about 2,000 people in the UK each year being diagnosed with the disease. Many of those now being diagnosed were exposed to asbestos prior to the dangers becoming more widely known. Tony Woodley, joint general secretary of Unite, commented “The way the insurers refused to pay out in these cases is a kick in the guts to every family that’s watched a loved-one suffer a painful and degrading death from mesothelioma.” He added “Insurers sold their policies knowing that employers and workers’ families would rely on them.

Now they’re trying to weasel out of paying based on fancy legal argument and policy small print . Ian McFall, head of asbestos policy at trade union law firm Thompsons Solicitors, also said ” Asbestos victims will welcome the decision by Unite to pursue the appeal to the highest court in the land and the union’s principled stance in opposing the insurers’ latest legal challenge.”