Mesothelioma compensation
.jpg)
Mesothelioma compensation varies depending on case type. Compensation may be available from asbestos trust funds, settlements or jury verdicts. Settlements average around $1 million and lawsuit verdicts average $2.4 million. Compensation from trust funds may take less than one year. The time frame for payouts from trials or settlements varies based on the specific cas
Average Mesothelioma Compensation Amounts
Average mesothelioma payouts vary depending on the type of compensation pursued and several other factors. The annual Mealey’s Litigation Report: Asbestos states average mesothelioma compensation amounts, including:
Average mesothelioma lawsuit verdicts are about $2.4 million.
Average mesothelioma settlement payouts vary from $1 million – $1.4 million.
Trust fund payouts vary greatly. High-paying trusts may award $125,000 or more. Individuals may seek compensation from more than one trust.
Mesothelioma patients and their families should discuss claim options with an experienced lawyer. Many factors may impact the amount of compensation awarded. For example, though lawsuits often have higher average payouts, some individuals may wish to avoid a trial.
Factors Affecting Mesothelioma Payouts
The amount of mesothelioma financial compensation awarded varies based on several factors, including:
Type of asbestos claim filed
Venue, or location, of where you file your mesothelioma claim
Occupational history, including any military service
Asbestos exposure history (type of asbestos, location and amount of exposure)
Your mesothelioma law firm can help you determine which option is best suited to your situation.
Types of Mesothelioma Compensation
There are several types of compensation for mesothelioma. A mesothelioma lawyer can help you determine which compensation options you may be eligible for.
Asbestos Trust Funds
Asbestos trust funds are created by bankrupt asbestos companies to provide compensation for current and future claims. Individuals may be entitled to file an asbestos trust fund claim when they are exposed to asbestos by a company and develop an asbestos-related disease.
More than $30 billion has been set aside in trust funds to compensate mesothelioma victims. There are more than 65 asbestos trusts.
Asbestos companies often file for bankruptcy due to rising legal issues and costs surrounding dangerous asbestos product exposure. As part of the bankruptcy proceedings, trust funds are established to ensure funds are available for victims of asbestos exposure.
These trusts have certain criteria mesothelioma victims must meet in order to be eligible for a payout. An asbestos attorney can help determine your eligibility and handle the filing process. Some patients may be eligible to file a claim against multiple asbestos trust funds.
Mesothelioma Settlements
Mesothelioma settlements are legally binding agreements between an asbestos defendant and plaintiff. A settlement can be offered before, during or after a mesothelioma lawsuit goes to trial. In many cases, companies will offer a settlement before the claim reaches trial.
The patient or family member filing can decide whether or not to accept a settlement. An experienced mesothelioma lawyer will guide you through the settlement process.
Mesothelioma Lawsuit Verdicts
Mesothelioma lawsuit verdicts are decided by a jury at the end of trial proceedings. If the jury finds a defendant liable for asbestos exposure, they will determine an asbestos lawsuit payout. The amount awarded will be determined by various factors, such as expenses incurred from the mesothelioma diagnosis. The trial verdict award may also include punitive damages.
A skilled attorney can advise you about the strength of your case and the likelihood of a favorable verdict and award.
Other Types of Mesothelioma Compensation
Patients or loved ones may be eligible for other types of compensation, including:
Workers’ compensation claims: Individuals exposed to asbestos at work may be eligible for workers’ compensation. Some industries that commonly used asbestos include construction, manufacturing and shipbuilding.
Veterans’ claims: Military personnel are often exposed to asbestos. Veterans who were exposed to asbestos and develop an asbestos illness may be able to file a claim with the United States Department of Veterans Affairs (VA).
Individuals may also be able to receive financial assistance from other institutions. Private health insurance, Medicare and Medicaid, disability insurance, social security disability and community grants may be available for eligible patients to assist with mesothelioma costs.
Statutory Sick Pay and Employment and Support Allowance
If you are employed but unable to work because of illness or disability, you may be able to get Statutory Sick Pay (SSP). Your employer will pay SSP for up to 28 weeks of sickness. Before SSP ends, find out if you can get a benefit called Employment and Support Allowance (ESA). ESA provides support to people under State Pension age who can do some work (permitted work).
Personal Independence Payment and Attendance Allowance
These benefits are for people who have difficulty moving around or looking after themselves. Personal Independence Payment (PIP) is for people aged 16 to State Pension age. PIP has replaced the Disability Living Allowance (DLA) for adults.
Attendance Allowance (AA) is a benefit for people who are at or above State Pension age.
Industrial Injuries Disablement Benefit (IIDB)
Industrial Injuries Disablement Benefit (IIDB) is an important benefit for people with certain asbestos-related illnesses, including mesothelioma.
It is payable if the mesothelioma may have been caused by exposure to asbestos dust at work. This includes people who have worked abroad for a UK company. You do not need to have worked with asbestos to get this benefit. You only need to have been exposed to asbestos dust at work.
You cannot get this benefit if you were self-employed. You may still be able to get this benefit if you are retired.
You should always get advice from a solicitor about making a claim for IIDB. You will need to give information about where you were exposed to asbestos as well as how you were exposed. It is very important that the information on the benefit application form is filled in correctly. It may affect your claim for this benefit or other compensation claims if the form is not filled in correctly.
IIDB can be paid into your bank account every week, 4 weeks or 13 weeks.
People with mesothelioma are entitled to the maximum rate. If you are given this benefit, you may also be entitled to other benefits. You can get more information about these from a welfare rights adviser or specialist solicitor.
Local asbestos support groups may also be able to offer you advice and information about benefits. You can get information about support groups from:
Compensation from employers
Anyone diagnosed with mesothelioma who has worked somewhere where they were exposed to asbestos in the past may be able to claim compensation from their employer. This includes people working in the armed forces who have been exposed to asbestos after 1987.
If you were not exposed to asbestos at work, you may also be able to claim. For example, you could claim if you are a spouse who was exposed from handling contaminated work clothes.
This type of compensation claim requires specialist legal knowledge and must be made through an experienced, specialist solicitor. There is more information below on how to find a specialist solicitor.
For a compensation claim to be successful, you have to show that your exposure happened because your employer at the time (or another person or organisation responsible) was:
careless (negligent) in not keeping up the standards required by law
not following specific safety regulations.
For example, this might be if you were exposed to asbestos when your employer knew, or should have known, about the risks to you, even if you were unaware of them.
If a former employer has gone out of business, it may be possible to claim against the employer’s insurers. If they cannot be found, it may be possible to make a claim under the Diffuse Mesothelioma Payment Scheme.
Is there a time limit to claim?
Court proceedings for a claim must be started within 3 years of the date you were first diagnosed with an injury due to asbestos. This means 3 years from the date of diagnosis of an asbestos-related illness, not 3 years since your exposure to the asbestos.
Family members of people who died from mesothelioma within three years of being diagnosed may still be able to make a claim. The 3-year period to make the claim begins from the date of death.
Sometimes this time limit can be extended. You can ask for advice from a specialist solicitor even if you think it may be too late to make a claim.
Why choose Thompsons’ mesothelioma solicitors?
At Thompsons, we have been involved in asbestos litigation for over 40 years, longer than any other law firm in the UK.
During that time, our experts have collected unrivalled records regarding asbestos exposure. We have access to expert reports, historical records of asbestos in local areas, and information about which companies used asbestos and when.
Thompsons has the UK’s largest asbestos register, which records details about the asbestos exposure of thousands of individuals across the UK. The register gives us a unique insight into common sources of asbestos exposure and provides a database of potential witnesses to support your claim.
Our extensive records also include lists of employers’ insurers, even for employers that have long since ceased trading.
Having this wealth of evidence at our fingertips enables us to prepare winning asbestos cases in a fraction of the time taken by other law firms, who will often be starting from scratch.
Thompsons Solicitors is a member of the Mesothelioma UK Legal Panel, which recognises the firm’s expertise fighting for the rights of asbestos victims. We’ve also signed the Mesothelioma Patient Charter, which promotes the highest standards of care and legal advice for mesothelioma patients and their families, and calls on the government and employers to maximise services, funding, safety and prevention to protect and support those who have been exposed to asbestos.
Our mesothelioma lawyers will also be able to put you in touch with local support groups for people diagnosed with mesothelioma.
Call us today on 0800 0 224 224 or complete our online form.
Mesothelioma compensation payments
You may be able to get a one-off, lump-sum payment if you were exposed to asbestos dust at work and have mesothelioma. If you have mesothelioma that was not caused through employment, you may still be able to get a payment. You may also be able to get a payment if you were exposed to asbestos while working abroad for a UK company.
You can apply for the lump sum through different schemes. But the payments are the same and the application is made on the same form. The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) will work out which scheme the payment will be made from. The 2 schemes are:
The Pneumoconiosis etc (Workers’ Compensation) Act 1979 (PWCA).
Diffuse Mesothelioma Payments 2008 scheme (DMPS).
You should always get advice from a solicitor about making a claim for a lump sum payment. You will need to give information about where you were exposed to asbestos, as well as how you were exposed. It is very important that the information on the benefit application form is filled in correctly. Incorrect information may affect your claim for this benefit, or other compensation claims.
Is there a time limit to claim?
There are time limits for making a claim under either scheme. These are:
under the PWCA scheme, 1 year from the award of IIDB
under the DMPS, 1 year from diagnosis.
You should speak to a specialist solicitor straight away who can advise you about your claim.
Can I still make a mesothelioma claim if the place I was exposed to asbestos no longer exists?
Yes. Even if the organisation responsible no longer exists, our mesothelioma lawyers can still pursue a claim for you, as we can track down your company’s former insurer and make a claim against them. Speak to us today and we can explain your options to seek mesothelioma compensation.
Our long history of acting for those who were exposed to asbestos means that we have an extensive database of employers and insurers who have been responsible for exposing workers in the past. Sometimes former employers try to hide their history workplace exposure or try to hide who their insurers were at the time. In these circumstances, we can use our unrivalled knowledge to help you win your claim.
How much compensation could I get for a mesothelioma claim?
The amount of compensation we can secure differs between every case. Though relatively high, mesothelioma compensation is case specific and is calculated by looking at a range of factors, including financial losses and care costs. Our mesothelioma solicitors will be able to advise you on the likely level of compensation if your claim is successful.
Who is at risk of developing mesothelioma?
Mesothelioma is associated with certain professions where asbestos use was commonplace. This includes boilermakers, electricians, carpenters, builders, pipe fitters and plumbers. However, it is not limited to these professions and anyone who was exposed to asbestos can contract the illness.
Asbestos is an excellent insulator of heat and electricity, and it was commonly used in construction before it was banned in the 1990s. This means millions of buildings across the UK contain asbestos, and anyone who lived, worked or played near these buildings could potentially have been exposed. The families of people who worked with asbestos were also at risk, as the workers could bring the dust home on their clothes.
.jpg)