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Family's compo battle for lung disease relative

Feb 15 2009 by Robert Weatherall, Sunday Sun

Albert mainly worked for small sub-contractors which have gone bust, so he will be unable to claim against their insurers when the law changes.

Ashok Kumar, MP for Middlesbrough South and East Cleveland, is calling for an overhaul of the insurance industry to help people like Albert.

Albert’s son Mark, 43, said: “It is just not right that someone can spend their life working with a deadly substance and no one is accountable.

“There are days when he says he wishes he was dead and that is a very sad thing for family to see.

“It has caused him quite a bit of worry and there are times he sits there and you can see him becoming frustrated.”

“My dad doesn’t want the compensation. He wants someone to be held accountable for destroying his health.”

Mr Kumar wants a scheme similar to one for victims of traffic accidents with uninsured drivers.

He said: “I’m told as many as one in 10 claims may fail because the employer no longer exists.

“I am asking the Government to set up an insurer of last resort.

“There is, I believe, an overwhelming need and justification for the creation of an Employers Liability Insurance Bureau modelled on the Uninsured Drivers Agreement.”

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