• Before the mesothelioma took hold Alan had been very fit and active, still regularly playing five-a-side football.

    A few weeks after that awful diagnosis, Alan contacted us about making a compensation claim for mesothelioma. However, sadly at that stage, Alan was unable to provide us with much information to prove negligent asbestos exposure that caused his mesothelioma.

    Initial instructions were taken concerning his employment history and potential exposure to asbestos which could have caused the mesothelioma. This pointed to his work as a fork lift truck driver for CAV at Rochester Esplanade, Rochester, Medway, Kent in the mid-1970s as the most likely source of his asbestos exposure. However, his memory and instructions were vague. Also, understandably, Alan found it difficult dealing with the claim and the severely painful symptoms of his mesothelioma.

    Enquiries of local archive records and internet searches were undertaken to confirm the presence of asbestos at the site and the particular locations where Alan had worked for CAV at Rochester Espalande, Kent and to try to trace supporting witnesses or documents. This was tricky because the whole site had been demolished and parts of the site where Alan had worked dated back to World War Two when the site was occupied by Shorts. The company CAV had also reorganised since and were now part of Lucas Ltd.

    Enquires were still ongoing when we received the sad news that Alan had died. An Inquest confirmed Alan had died from mesothelioma caused by his industrial asbestos exposure (probably at CAV, Rochester, Kent). We were then instructed by his widow, Barb, to pursue a compensation claim for mesothelioma.

    Our approach

    Jeremy met Barb at her home in Rochester, Kent to get further instructions to make a mesothelioma compensation claim on a “no win, no fee”. A full statement was taken from her, based mainly upon what Alan had told her about his working history and asbestos exposure. We took Barb’s full account of Alan’s medical history and fitness and how his mesothelioma affected him before it tragically took his life. We also took from Barb full documents and details of the services and financial dependency Barb had lost due to Alan’s death.

    We supplemented Barb’s evidence with research into the location of asbestos at the site. A hearsay account was prepared covering the somewhat sketchy information Alan had given Jeremy before he died about his asbestos exposure at CAV. We made further efforts to trace other potential witnesses. A statement was taken from a former colleague about Alan’s potential asbestos exposure at CAV’s Rochester, Kent site.

    We obtained Alan’s full Inquest and medical records concerning his mesothelioma and his general medical history. We prepared and calculated a full schedule of losses. We sent a detailed letter of claim with supporting evidence to Lucas Ltd, successors to CAV, claiming compensation for Alan’s asbestos exposure which caused his mesothelioma and death. Lucas’s loss adjusters then advised that they intended to settle Alan’s mesothelioma compensation claim but no formal admission was made.

    All the medical records were considered and cross checked against the instructions from Barb and a further detailed statement was taken from her dealing with Alan’s mesothelioma and general medical history and the losses and dependency. A chest consultant was instructed to prepare a medical report concerning Alan’s mesothelioma based on the records and Barb’s statement. He was also asked to advise on what Alan’s life expectancy would have been but for the mesothelioma and on Barb’s life expectancy.

    Upon receipt of the medical reports, a revised and updated schedule of losses was prepared and served. The total maximum value of the mesothelioma claim was now calculated at £242,496. A compensation offer was invited.

    The outcome

    The Defendant made an initial compensation offer for the mesothelioma claim of £185,000.00 (before benefit deductions). After discussing with Barb we made a counter offer of £213,378.00. In response, the Defendant made an increased compensation offer of £200,000.00. We advised Barb this offer was a little low for Alan’s mesothelioma claim.

    However, Barb chose to accept this compensation offer to bring an early end to the claim without court proceedings.

    Client quote

    Barb commented:

    Jeremy was understanding, kind and thoughtful. He was very patient with me and respected my decisions, made a difficult situation bearable. Thank you for all your hard work that you have done for me, Alan and the family. We are so grateful.

    The Lawyer

    This mesothelioma compensation claim against CAV, Rochester, Kent was dealt with by Jeremy Horton. He is a Solicitor and Partner in the firm, specialising in mesothelioma and other asbestos compensation claims in Kent, Medway, Essex & beyond. Jeremy is passionate about helping asbestos disease victims and their families achieve fair compensation as quickly as possible. He is the only APIL Accredited Occupational and Asbestos Disease Specialist solicitor in Kent, Medway, Essex, Surrey or Sussex.

    Jeremy commented:

    I was very pleased we were able to get substantial compensation for Barb for her Alan’s mesothelioma. However, no amount of compensation could bring Alan back for Barb. They had been childhood sweet hearts and the mesothelioma took Alan from Barb when he was still very fit and healthy and would have had many years left to share with Barb. I’m sure Alan would have been very proud of Barb who bravely did a sponsored wing walk in aid of Mesothelioma UK to help other mesothelioma victims.

    This content is correct at time of publication

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