Payout boost for mesothelioma patients

9:28am Monday 24th July 2006

HUNDREDS of workers in Swindon who are suffering from mesothelioma have been given a helping hand in speeding up compensation payouts.

The Government has announced that a standard claim letter and leaflet were being developed in a bid to make settlements more quickly.

Work and Pensions Secretary John Hutton said his department would also work with HM Revenue and Customs to trace employers' records and the Association of British Insurers will also open a phone inquiry helpline in the autumn.

The Government moved to overturn a decision made by the Lords which would have robbed hundreds of Swindon people who contracted mesothelioma of full compensation payouts.

The Lords' decision meant victims and their families in cases involving several employers, none of which can be blamed specifically for the onset of the fatal illness, would have received smaller payouts and had to seek compensation from each.

A clause added to the Compensation Bill meant sufferers and their families would get the compensation they deserved and not have to prove which company they were working for when they contracted the killer disease.

The move means the change should be law before MPs leave for their summer break tomorrow and can be implemented from April.

Mesothelioma is known as the Swindon disease because it was contracted by many workers at the former railway workshops.

The disease killed 105 people in Swindon between 1981 and 2000.

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