Asbestos: a clear and present danger--a UK perspective

Our plain-English summary of Asbestos: a clear and present danger--a UK perspective, by A. Budgen (Lung Cancer, 2004).

The study

• Author: A. Budgen
• Journal: Lung Cancer
• Published: 2004;45 Suppl 1:S77-9
• Type of article: Historical article
• Cited by: 2 articles, as counted by NIH iCite
• Read it: PubMed · Publisher

Abstract

The hazardous nature of asbestos has been recognised for over a hundred years yet, despite legislation to protect and compensate workers, the battle for adequate compensation continues.

In plain English

This article was not a research study but a short commentary by a solicitor at the UK law firm Irwin Mitchell on asbestos compensation. It reported no original systematic research, methods or defined study population. The author described three UK compensation routes: Industrial Injuries Disablement Benefit, a state scheme under the Pneumoconiosis etc (Workers' Compensation) Act 1979, and civil claims for damages, which can also cover symptom-free pleural plaques. In the Fairchild cases, the Court of Appeal held in December 2001 that mesothelioma claimants exposed while working for more than one employer could not recover damages. The House of Lords heard the appeals in May 2002 and reversed that decision. The author wrote that a UK mesothelioma victim might receive £40k to 50k in general damages for pain and suffering, plus care costs and financial losses. A typical award for asymptomatic pleural plaques, paid on a provisional damages basis, was £5k to 7k. The author also reported more than 300,000 people pursuing civil claims in the UK and USA combined. The author argued that UK damages are too low and the asbestos legacy will last decades.

We wrote this plain-English summary from the full article with the help of AI, and a second AI model checked each sentence against the article. It is not the authors' wording; the abstract and the article are their own account.

What the study did and found

• Design: Commentary (opinion piece) by a solicitor; not a research study
• Who was studied: No defined study population; the article discusses asbestos victims and compensation claims in the UK
• Exposure: Asbestos in general; no fiber types are specified
• Main results:
  • The author stated that civil claims for damages in the UK can be pursued for the diseases covered by Industrial Injuries Disablement Benefit (asbestosis, mesothelioma, lung cancer with pleural thickening or asbestosis, and bilateral diffuse pleural thickening) and also for symptom-free pleural plaques
  • The author described the Fairchild cases: in December 2001 the Court of Appeal held that mesothelioma claimants exposed while working for more than one employer could not recover damages. The House of Lords heard the appeals in May 2002 and reversed that decision.
  • The author stated that a UK mesothelioma victim might be awarded between £40k and 50k in general damages (for pain and suffering), plus care costs and financial losses
  • The author stated that awards in pleural plaques cases are paid on a provisional damages basis, and that a typical award for asymptomatic pleural plaques is between £5k and 7k
  • The author stated that the largest UK award so far for a mesothelioma victim was £4.37m, paid to the widow of an entrepreneur who was a client of the author
  • The author stated that more than 300,000 people were pursuing civil claims for compensation in the UK and USA combined
• The authors' conclusion: The author argued that the level of damages in the UK is far too low and that the asbestos legacy will remain for decades to come

Topics

The National Library of Medicine indexes this study under subjects our site covers: Mesothelioma.

Related studies

• Asbestos-related disease in South Africa: the social production of an invisible epidemic — L. Braun, S. Kisting (2006)
• Asbestos in Belgium: use and abuse — S.Y. Nay (2003)
• Cape Plc: South African mineworkers' quest for justice — R. Meeran (2003)
• Historical developments and perspectives in inorganic fiber toxicity in man — I.J. Selikoff (1990)
• Asbestos and international organizations — L. Tomatis (2004)
• Asbestos mining in Southern Africa, 1893-2002 — J. McCulloch (2003)

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