A Look at Mesothelioma Insurance Claims

In the United States and much of the world, asbestos was used very heavily in most aspects of construction. It was also used in a wide variety of consumer, commercial and industrial products. The reason it was so prevalent was because it’s a cheap, naturally-occurring substance that has a remarkable ability to resist heat, fire, caustic chemicals and electricity.

However, in addition to all of these helpful properties, it also causes cancer. These days, most people are aware that exposure to asbestos causes malignant mesothelioma, but this was a closely guarded secret for much of the last century. Those in asbestos industry were well aware of the dangers of asbestos, but since they also knew it would take between 20 and 50 years for people to get sick, they were willing to take that chance and pay later if necessary. 

When they eventually had to pay up, it caused a lot of companies to go bankrupt. However, not all of the damages were paid by the companies that produced asbestos. Many had what are now known as “historic policies.” According to a recent news article from the Financial Times, these claims are now costing the insurance industry $15 billion more than had initially been projected.

The reason for this, as our Boston mesothelioma attorneys can explain, is because thousands of people are still getting diagnosed with mesothelioma each year, and many of those people are dying. While the insurance companies had hoped the partial ban on asbestos would result in a slowdown of the number of victims being diagnosed each year, that does not appear to be the case.

Since insurance companies make money by selling policies and trying to pay out less in claims than they earn in revenue, it is not hard to imagine how they are tired of paying out claims when people develop malignant mesothelioma. According to one recent study, the insurance companies have already paid out nearly $65 billion, and that number is still rising to about $100 billion, which is the new estimate.

One the reasons they were wrong on the estimates is because they were only making calculations based upon the number of workers they estimated were exposed to asbestos. What they failed to account for was children of those workers who were exposed through their parents and other relatives who came home from work each night still covered in the deadly asbestos fibers. This type of exposure to asbestos is called “take home” exposure in mesothelioma lawsuits.

In addition to this emerging class of mesothelioma claimants, there are also all of the people who are currently residing in structures that are filled with asbestos and are in a crumbling and dilapidated state. It is a sad reality that many of these people will one day develop the deadly form of cancer. For these reasons, it appears that it will be a very long time before we are no longer seeing victims of asbestos exposure.

Mesothelioma and asbestos

Mesothelioma is a rare and aggressive form of cancer which kills around 2,400 people in the UK each year. It is usually caused by exposure to asbestos, which often occurs in the workplace. Insurers pay out £200 million a year to mesothelioma sufferers.

Asbestos is a material that was commonly used in the manufacturing and construction industries between the 1950s and the 1980s. People who worked in these industries during this time were regularly exposed to asbestos, inhaling asbestos dust and fibres over a prolonged period of time. It later emerged that the inhalation of asbestos was the main cause of mesothelioma.

Mesothelioma is a cancer which affects the lungs or the lining of the stomach. It is almost always fatal, with most sufferers dying within two years of diagnosis. There is currently no known cure for mesothelioma – treatment usually focuses on relieving a sufferer’s symptoms and improving their quality of life.

Mesothelioma sufferers can make compensation claims against the employer for whom they were working at the time they were exposed to asbestos. Mesothelioma has a long latency period – that is the time between a person’s initial exposure to asbestos and the development of the disease – usually between 30 and 40 years. This can mean that the employer in question no longer exists. In such cases, the mesothelioma sufferer can submit a claim to their former employer's employers' liability insurer. 

The insurance industry is committed to helping people with mesothelioma and their families to get the support they need. The ABI is campaigning to reform the compensation process for mesothelioma sufferers. We are working with the Government and insurers to make the compensation process quicker and easier for mesothelioma sufferers through measures including:

Supporting medical research

Insurers have donated over £3 million over the last three years to the British Lung Foundation (BLF)’s research into a cure for mesothelioma. 

Raising awareness of asbestos exposure at work and in the home

Insurers have funded the BLF’s ‘Take five and stay alive’ campaign which raises awareness of dangers of asbestos exposure among those most at risk for example, DIY enthusiasts and tradespeople such as plumbers and electricians.

Reforming the legal system

The legal process for mesothelioma claims can be complex, lengthy and expensive. The insurance industry is campaigning for improved processes that will allow mesothelioma sufferers to settle their cases more quickly.

Tracing insurers and former employers

Mesothelioma sufferers may find it difficult to track down their former employer’s employers' liability insurer if the company has gone out of business. In April 2011 the insurance industry set up the Employers’ Liability Tracing Office (ELTO) to help people find insurers if their former employer is no longer in business. The ELTO has a database of millions of insurance policies from all past and present employers' liability insurers. The service has made tracing policies considerably easier for mesothelioma sufferers.

Over the next few month the ABI and the ELTO will be introducing further improvements .These will include a committee to analyse claimants' evidence of the existence of their former employer's employers' liability policy in the absence of the policy itself.

Mesothelioma Support Scheme

In January 2014 the Government passed the Mesothelioma Act 2014legislation to establish the Diffuse Mesothelioma Payment Scheme (DMPS). The scheme is funded by the insurance industry and will make payments to around 3,000 mesothelioma sufferers who cannot find an employer or insurer to claim from. Mesothelioma sufferers diagnosed after 25 July 2012 who are unable to trace an insurer or compensator are eligible to make a claim under the scheme. The first payments will be made in July 2014. A levy imposed on employers' liability insurers will fund the scheme at an estimated cost of £35 million a year. For more information see the DMPS website. 

Next steps

if you have been diagnosed with mesothelioma speak to a claimant lawyer about making a claim against your former employer

if your former employer has gone out of business, you may be able to track down their insurer through the Employers’ Liability Tracing Office (ELTO

go to the DMPS website for further information