On 2 November the Economic Secretary to the Treasury, Ed Balls,
announced that the Treasury will legislate to allow the Financial
Services Authority to make changes to the Financial Services
Compensation Scheme (FSCS) to help victims of mesothelioma receive
more timely access to compensation.
Ed Balls said:
"Mesothelioma is a disease that has a devastating impact on
people's lives. These changes should help victims of this disease
receive more timely access to compensation where the Financial
Services Compensation Scheme is involved."
Under the proposed changes negligent employers and their
insurers, who have paid victims of the disease, will now be able to
claim a contribution from the FSCS in certain cases. This should
help avoid delay in compensation being paid to claimants while the
FSCS' liability is being established.
Andrew Morgan, partner in the
Asbestos Claims Department of Field Fisher
Waterhouse LLP (FFW) said:
"Ever since the landmark decision of Fairchild in 2002 there
has been a problem with mesothelioma claims that are part-funded by
insolvent insurance companies. Until now the problem has been that
solvent insurers and employers might be willing to offer proper
compensation to mesothelioma claimants but would be afraid to do so
before the FSCS agrees to make a contribution. For various reasons
the FSCS can take a long time to reach a decision. If the solvent
insurer makes a payment in the meantime then it might lose out
because until now the FSCS has had no power to make any repayments
to the other insurers or employers. This means solvent insurers
have delayed settling claims to avoid falling foul of the FSCS
rules. With this change in the rules I hope we will see quicker
settlements in mesothelioma claims. Certainly this change is
supported and welcomed by claimant representatives and insurers
alike."
FFW responded to the FSA/Treasury joint consultation in October.
The results of the consultation exercise can be found here.
Lawyers at Field Fisher Waterhouse LLP's Asbestos Claims Department have represented people
with asbestos disease claims, including mesothelioma claims, for
over 20 years. By August 2006 the Asbestos
Claims Department had recovered over £100 million in
compensation for over 1,700 clients over the years.
For further information, please contact Andrew Morgan, Rodney
Nelson-Jones or Peter Williams on
020 7861 4000.