The wife of a man who, unfortunately, passed away following exposure to asbestos has received a £165,000 settlement thanks to JMW's industrial disease team.

The Claim

Mr B was exposed to asbestos in two jobs; that of a school maintenance man in the 1980s and as an apprentice plumbing and heating engineer with his father’s family-owned company in the 1960s. In both jobs, he was exposed to asbestos through regular contact with asbestos-lagged boilers and pipework.

Mrs B’s husband was diagnosed with mesothelioma in August, and sadly passed away the next month. Mrs B decided to make a claim on behalf of her husband and was put in touch with JMW Solicitors through her local asbestos support and awareness group. We agreed to take the case on a no win, no fee basis.

The Defendants

We sent the school a letter of claim on Mrs B’s behalf, outlining Mr B’s exposure to asbestos and subsequent death from mesothelioma. Mr B’s father’s business had been contracted to the same school, and he had been exposed to asbestos-lagged boilers and pipework there during the 1960s as well as the 1980s.

The school’s insurer requested additional information from us. We put together a witness statement of a former colleague of Mr B outlining the type of work he did.

The school’s insurer admitted liability in Mr B’s case, but they suggested a degree of contributory negligence because Mr B’s earlier employment had been through his father’s business. We highlighted that Mr B had been a junior member of the business, and wasn’t involved in decision making.

The Settlement

We prepared a Schedule of Loss, for Mrs B, which included damages for Mrs B’s pain and suffering, her bereavement and a claim for loss of financial dependency and practical assistance for the whole of the period that Mr B would have survived for, had it not been for the mesothelioma.

We sent the Schedule of Loss to the insurer, who made a settlement offer. We felt this offer was too low and suggested Mrs B rejected it. Mrs B did so, and we started to negotiate a better settlement. After negotiations, the insurer eventually offered Mrs B £165,000, which Mrs B accepted. She was delighted with the sum she received and kindly forwarded a letter of thanks at the conclusion of the claim.