Making an Asbestosis/Mesothelioma Claim

Asbestosis and mesothelioma are caused by the inhalation of asbestos fibres. Any inhalation is potentially harmful and can lead to asbestosis and mesothelioma. It may begin a process which lasts 15-25 years. Once asbestosis and mesothelioma are diagnosed, death is inevitable, usually within 15 months or so. Nevertheless, negligence must be established against the knowledge of the day. What is reasonably foreseeable in the present day (i.e. asbestosis, mesothelioma, etc) may not have been foreseeable at the time of exposure. Asbestosis usually begins when pleural plaques (scar tissue) form on the pleura (outer lining of the lung). They take at least 12 years to develop from the exposure. They have no effect on lung function except in the very rare case where the plaques have become so extensive that they constrict the actual working of the lung. The next stage is pleural fibrosis/pleural thickening. This is actual fibrosis to the outer lining of the lung and causes the pleura to become thickened. Unlike mere pleural plaques, it does restrict the lungs and affect lung function as it causes breathlessness. Apart from asbestosis, there are other causes of the condition such as old infections, tuberculosis, etc. It may or may not be progressive. Asbestosis, properly so called, is actual fibrosis within the lung - pulmonary fibrosis/interstitial fibrosis caused by asbestos exposure (which also has other causes). At this stage, the disease will be progressive and there is a definite correlation between length and quantity of exposure and the disease itself. In the worst cases of asbestosis, the sufferer may have mesothelioma (a malignant tumour which can only be caused by asbestos exposure) or even bronchial carcinoma (lung cancer). Symptoms of asbestosis and mesothelioma include shortness of breath, chest tightness and pain, a persistent and productive cough, poor sleep, and appetite loss. Presently, over 3,500 people die each year in the United Kingdom from asbestosis, mesothelioma, and the other conditions related to asbestos exposure and the annual numbers of deaths are predicted to go on rising into the next few decades.

Asbestos is a naturally occurring mineral that has been used for over 150 years on a large commercial scale as a fire proofing and insulation material. It was used extensively as a building material. Its use is now illegal. Whilst it is undisturbed and in good condition, there is no risk. However, if it is disturbed or damaged, the resulting release of asbestos fibers poses a severe danger to health. It is estimated that many thousands of tones of asbestos are still present in over half a million premises and will take several decades to remove. Those involved in its continuing removal are at high risk, as are workers involved in the refurbishment, repair or maintenance of the buildings concerned, including plumbers, joiners and electricians.

Examples of categories of occupations at particular risk of acquiring asbestosis, mesothelioma, etc, include laggers, merchant navy seamen, refractory bricklayers and turbine/boiler operators in power stations, dockers, lab technicians, asbestos factory employees, building site and construction workers, aerospace workers, insulation engineers, boilermen, architects, auto mechanics, brake mechanics, building superintendents, carpenters, pipe fitters, roofers, tilers, sheet metal workers, and the families of exposed workers

The Accident Solicitors, the brand, is part of Antrobus Solicitors, a firm regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority. Details of the professional rules which regulate solicitors can be found at the following website address: http://www.rules.sra.org.uk

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