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Minister welcomes proposals for faster asbestos compensation
Minister for Health and Social Services, Dr Brian Gibbons AM, has welcomed proposals to provide faster compensation for people whose health has been affected by asbestos exposure.
Secretary of State for Work and Pensions John Hutton has set out proposals to provide faster compensation to all people diagnosed with mesothelioma, a cancer almost exclusively associated with asbestos exposure.
The proposals would cover Wales.
The proposals would provide up-front financial support (within six weeks) to people who were previously not eligible, including those who were:
Exposed to asbestos from a relative (e.g. from their overalls); Exposed to asbestos environmentally (e.g. lived near a factory using asbestos); Self-employed; and those who can’t trace their exposure to asbestos.Dr Gibbons said: “Compensation can never make up for the loss and suffering caused to individuals by mesothelioma. But these proposals would mean that sufferers or their families should not have to wait years for compensation. This legislation would mean that once diagnosed, every sufferer should receive a substantial payment within six weeks of making a claim.”
Currently only people who receive Industrial Injuries Disablement Benefit are eligible for state compensation.
The proposals would break this occupational link and would mean that, as soon as legislation passes through Parliament, all those with mesothelioma would be eligible for payment, irrespective of their employment status and provided that they have not already received compensation through personal injury claims or against an employer.
These payments could be as early as next year.
The cost of this proposed change would be met by compensation recovery.
Currently state payments are not recovered from civil compensation, so employers or insurers found liable often reduce and retain compensation by the amount already paid by the state to the individual.
A compensation recovery process will be introduced so that state payments are recovered if a civil compensation claim is subsequently successful.
These funds will be used to make up-front payments to all new mesothelioma claimants.
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