If you are suffering from an asbestos-related illness and your illness was caused by a past or present employer, then you may have a strong claim for compensation.
Under the circumstances, it is absolutely essential that you seek legal advice from a solicitor specialising in asbestos claims. Alternatively, you should call an asbestos advice helpline for immediate advice and to get all your claims-related questions answered.
A solicitor can help you with your asbestos claim by first establishing your eligibility for compensation, and secondly by advising you on the strength of your case. With regards to these, here is some more information about them.
Limitation period for making an asbestos claim
The Limitation Act 1980 requires that asbestos-related claims are brought forward within three years from the Date of Knowledge. The Date of Knowledge is the date that the presence of an asbestos-related disease was first established. This probably happened at a hospital appointment, or when you went for a medical check-up with your GP. To establish this date, you can request access to your medical records or a solicitor can find out for you.
It is sometimes possible to bring forward a claim after three years, however the courts require that good reasons are provided. The court will then carefully consider the case and the effects your illness has had and will have on you. Because of this, we would say it is very important that you act on any legal advice you receive quickly to avoid missing out.
The strength of your asbestos claim
To make an asbestos claim, you must have somebody to claim against. This could be a person, company or organisation. Most people suffering from asbestos-related illnesses worked on shipping docks building ships and on building sites between 1960 and 1985, which is when blue and brown asbestos was widely used. If this applies to you, then you can still make a claim even if your employer no longer exists, so long as they were insured.
Insurance is a very important consideration because claims (and especially historic claims) are only likely to be successful against an insurer. This is because insurers continue protecting their clients, even if they become bankrupt, for several years afterwards. It will have to be established who was responsible for your asbestos-related illness to bring your claim forward, which is the job of your solicitor who will investigate your injury claim.
Another thing to bear in mind is that asbestos claims can take several months to reach a conclusion, due to the amount of investigation required. It is not uncommon for instance for these claims to take over 6 months. However, your solicitor should offer you a timeframe for claim completion, based on the individual circumstances of your case.