 Landmark legal result for former Swindon railway workers
 Brigitte Chandler Wilts Gazette: 21st November 2008
Victims of asbestos-related cancer have won an important test case in the High Court today which will ensure they continue to have access to compensation.
The result is thought to be a landmark result for former railway workers, many of which live in the Swindon area, who contracted the disease.
Four insurance companies were disputing whether they were liable for compensation and had argued that the insurance policy in place when a worker was diagnosed with cancer was the policy against which a compensation claim should be made - not the policy which was in place when the worker was believed to have contracted the disease.
"If the High Court had ruled that the policy in place at the time of the diagnosis was the relevant one it would have made it more difficult to claim compensation," says Brigitte Chandler, a specialist industrial disease lawyer with solicitors, Charles Lucas & Marshall.
"This is a hugely significant victory for victims of asbestos-related disease and their families."
Asbestos related disease is the biggest cause of work-related death in the UK, mainly affecting railway-workers, construction workers and other heavy industries.
Employers take out liability insurance to insure them against compensation claims from workers who contract asbestos related diseases such as mesothelioma, often known as "the Swindon disease" which can take up to 60 years to develop.
"The majority of companies which employed workers who go on to develop the disease are no longer in business," added Ms Chandler.
"This made it vitally important for workers to have access to compensation through employers' liability insurance. This decision today enables that."
Insurers are expected to challenge the decision in the Court of Appeal.
For more information contact Brigitte Chandler on 01793 511055 or brigitte.chandler@clmlaw.co.uk
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