It is official; the UK now has a Mesothelioma Act 2014 thanks to the bill receiving Royal assent last week.
Designed to help offer support to those victims of the asbestos related cancer who are unable to trace the records of their former employers or their insurers, the Act see that they can claim 75% of the damages they would have got.
This is a huge improvement on receiving nothing, which was shockingly the case before and it is hoped by personal injury lobbyists such as APIL and victim support groups that it will be the start of something that will lead to more in the future.
The act states that any mesothelioma victim who finds themselves in the impossible position of being unable to get the necessary details are entitled to claim providing they were diagnosed after July 2012.
APIL welcomed the Mesothelioma Act on their twitter account but also vowed to continue with their efforts to push the government in to going further towards helping dying claimants.
It is theirs, and many people’s view that more could have been done and that victims who have been forced to claim down this route should be entitled to claim 100% of the compensation.
Only time will tell whether their efforts will be successful but for now this is a good start.
Image source(s)
1. Wikipedia; Rhoda Baer; https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Medically_unexplained_physical_symptoms#/media/File:Doctor_explains_x-ray_to_patient.jpg