We were instructed by Mr Brierley to investigate a claim for compensation following his diagnosis of mesothelioma.
Mr Brierley confirmed that he was exposed to asbestos dust when working for C. S. Wiggins & Sons Limited in Thundersley between 1965 and 1975 as an apprentice carpenter/joiner and master carpenter/joiner.
Mr Brierley described that he was exposed to asbestos dust when undertaking construction work. He installed asbestos corrugated sheets on garages and mitred the corners with power saws. He drilled and fixed them in place. He was also exposed to asbestos when demolishing asbestos prefabricated houses using hammers and sledge hammers and bulldozers. Further, he cut Asbestolux with an electric power saw.
We investigated C. S. Wiggins & Sons Limited and were unable to identify the employers’ liability insurers during the period of Mr Brierley’s exposure to asbestos dust. Employers liability insurance was not compulsory until 1972. An application was therefore submitted under the Diffuse Mesothelioma Payment Scheme 2014 on behalf of Mr Brierley.
Mr Brierley sadly passed away before the application could be processed. His family was awarded approximately £117,000 under the scheme.
Mr Brierley was resident in Thailand when he contacted Boyes Turner to make a claim for compensation on his behalf. We act on behalf of many ex-pats and there is no bar to bringing a claim for compensation when you are no longer resident in England and Wales.
It was disappointing that no employers’ liability insurance was identified for C. S. Wiggins & Sons Limited, but unfortunately this can be a common occurrence as there is no central record where all insurers had to record their policies. Therefore, sometimes policies are lost or no longer identifiable and in some circumstances they were never existed in the first place.
We were pleased to be able to reach a settlement for Mr Brierley and his family under the Diffuse Mesothelioma Payment Scheme 2014 which enabled them to receive some compensation.
