Mesothelioma and other asbestos-related diseases can be life-changing. Beyond the health issues and financial impact of potentially being unable to work or needing care, the impact on your wellbeing can be devastating.
At Ashtons Legal we understand how horrible it is to find out you or a family member have an illness related to asbestos. Receiving a diagnosis often comes as a shock, particularly as many illnesses do not show themselves for many years after exposure.
We know that all the money in the world cannot make up for the pain caused by these illnesses, but it could make life a bit easier to cope with.
If you decide to make a compensation claim for your asbestos-related condition, or on behalf of a family member who has passed away, we will support and guide you through your case.
Our specialist asbestos disease solicitors Sylvia Phillips and Andrew Wilson have successfully represented many clients in these types of claims, winning significant sums of compensation.
Martyn and Andrew work within our dependable personal injury team. We have been highly ranked by leading client guides The Legal 500 and Chambers & Partners for over 20 years. We are also Law Society Accredited for personal injury law.
If you are thinking about making a claim, it is likely that costs will be a big concern for you. We believe that the law should be accessible to everyone, so we offer most of our clients ‘no win, no fee’ type arrangements. This means there we be no initial costs to you in starting a claim and you do not have to pay our legal costs unless your claim succeeds.*
*Subject to entering into a conditional fee agreement in conjunction with a suitable insurance policy to cover any unrecovered disbursements and complying with your responsibilities under the terms of both.
Book a free no-obligation chat about starting your mesothelioma or other asbestos-related disease claim
You surely have many questions. We can offer you a free no-obligation chat to answer questions such as:
- Do you have sufficient grounds to successfully claim asbestos compensation?
- How much compensation could you get?
- How does making an asbestos claim work?
- What if the person or business responsible for the asbestos exposure cannot be traced?
- How long will the compensation claim process take?
- Can you get interim payments to pay for private treatment or rehabilitation in the meantime?
- Can you make a claim if the asbestos disease was caused by dust from a partner’s clothes rather than direct workplace exposure?
- Can you bring an asbestos compensation claim after the death of a loved one from mesothelioma or another asbestos-related disease?
Our specialist asbestos compensation claims solicitors will be happy to answer all your questions and provide all the information you need to make a decision about whether to move forwards with your claim. We can come to your home to speak to you if that would be easier.
We have offices in Norfolk, Suffolk and Cambridge and we also act for people in other areas including Stevenage and other towns in Hertfordshire. If you are from somewhere else, please also do not hesitate to get in touch – we have lots of experience acting for people from other areas with strong industrial histories.
We are happy to meet with you in whatever way suits you best, including virtually using digital platforms such as Microsoft Teams. You can also come to our offices in Cambridge, Bury St Edmunds, Norwich or Ipswich if you would prefer.
To arrange a free initial consultation, get in touch with our asbestos claims experts near Stevenage.
Our mesothelioma and asbestos-related disease claims expertise
Our asbestos and mesothelioma claims solicitors have a strong track record bringing successful claims in respect of the following diseases:
- Mesothelioma
- Asbestosis
- Respiratory injury
- Pleural thickening
- Lung cancer caused by asbestos
Our personal injury solicitors also have a wide range of specialist experience in other types of industrial diseases and workplace injuries.
How we can help you to claim asbestos and mesothelioma compensation
Working out if you can bring a claim and who is responsible
Our first step will be to start gathering evidence and reviewing it. We will talk to you about what happened, and it may also help us to speak to your colleagues and former colleagues about your workplace conditions and asbestos exposure.
We understand that many workers, such as plumbers, painters and decorators, carpenters, electricians, joiners, shopfitters, constructions workers and building surveyors may have worked at many different locations during their career. So, it may be hard to work out where the asbestos exposure happened. To help with this, we will often create a timeline of employments.
When putting together your compensation claim, we will consider the following:
- Duty of care – what could and should your employer have done to protect you from exposure to asbestos?
- Statutory duty – what legal responsibilities did your employer have to protect you from asbestos?
- Did your employer breach their duty of care or statutory duty?
- How did the exposure to asbestos happen and did it cause your illness?
In some cases, it is difficult to establish where and how a person was exposed to asbestos dust. It may be the case that they were exposed indirectly, for example, from breathing in dust caught on their partner’s work clothes or living near industrial sites where asbestos was used. We take all possible steps to help claimants identify who is responsible and whether they can bring a claim.
Why asbestos-related disease claims are different to other personal injury claims
Asbestos-related diseases such as mesothelioma often take years or even decades after exposure to develop. As such, it can be challenging to work out exactly when and how the disease was caused.
Our asbestos solicitors near Stevenage understand this and will guide you through a series of questions to help us work out what may have happened. This allows us to build you the strongest possible compensation claim.
You may have also heard that personal injury claims must be started within three years of the injury occurring. In asbestos-related disease claims, this three-year clock does not start running until you or your loved one has been diagnosed because it is usually impossible to know that exposure has happened and caused an illness until you start to get symptoms. Read more about asbestos claim time limits here.
Valuing your asbestos compensation claim
With years of experience handling these types of claims, we can help you calculate how much compensation you are likely to be entitled to. Our assessment is based on how serious your injuries are and the impact your illness has had on your life, including your financial situation and lifestyle.
The amount of compensation you are likely to receive can vary depending on the severity of the disease, at what point in your life you became ill and your financial situation.
Below are some examples of recent cases where we have won asbestos-related disease and industrial disease settlements for our clients:
- Six figure settlement secured for mesothelioma sufferer’s family – Ashtons Legal
- £50,000 obtained for former Norfolk carpenter – Ashtons Legal Solicitors
- Six-figure sum obtained for family of mesothelioma sufferer – Ashtons Legal
- Substantial settlement for a Norfolk man diagnosed with Mesothelioma (ashtonslegal.co.uk)
- Rapid £50,000 initial payment obtained for Suffolk mesothelioma sufferer – Ashtons Legal
- £175,000 obtained for family of Cambridgeshire mesothelioma sufferer – Ashtons Legal
- Five figure sum obtained for family of Norfolk metal worker – Ashtons Legal
- Over £100,000 obtained for family of mesothelioma sufferer – Ashtons Legal
- £40,000 obtained for family of asbestos-related lung cancer sufferer – Ashtons Legal
Obtaining interim payments for asbestos-related disease claims
We often apply for interims payments for our clients during the early part of the compensation claims process. This is money you can claim before the final settlement to support you while your claim is ongoing.
Interim payments can be used for things like rehabilitation, to cover lost income or to allow you to have the best quality of life if your condition is terminal. At the very least, it will mean that you do not have to worry about finances while your claim is progressing.
The process of an asbestos disease claim
Our team are skilled negotiators, so we can settle most personal injury claims without the need to go to court. We will make sure that your claim in presented in the strongest possible way, persuading the responsible person or business to settle without the need for court proceedings.
Negotiating a settlement out of court means that your claim is likely to be settled faster and the process will probably be less stressful.
However, we appreciate that not all claims can be settled amicably, for example, if the responsible party will not admit liability or will not agree to settle for as much compensation as you need. We can help you take your claim all the way, including representing you during court hearings. We will make sure you are fully prepared and provide support and guidance throughout the proceedings.
We will always be available by call and email if you have a question or would like an update on the progress of your case.
If it turns out that the source of the asbestos exposure cannot be traced, we may be able to help you claim from the Diffuse Mesothelioma Payment Scheme.
Claiming for an asbestos-related disease when someone has died
Sadly, some people do not receive a diagnosis for an asbestos-related disease until it has reached an advanced stage and may pass away before their claim is completed. In this case, we can still bring claims on behalf of their estate and family.
Some of our clients need palliative care at a hospice and fortunately, there are some excellent options in Hertfordshire and the surrounds. We will include the costs of hospice care in your compensation claim.
Book your free initial consultation with our specialist asbestos claims solicitors near Stevenage
If you have questions about bringing a mesothelioma compensation claim in Hertfordshire and would like an initial consultation, please get in touch.
Give us a call or use our online enquiry form to request a callback and we will be happy to arrange a meeting for you with one of our expert asbestos claims lawyers at a time and place convenient to you.