Widow receives double expected settlement in mesothelioma claim against Royal Mail
Shaheen Mosquera settled a claim for a widow whose late husband was exposed to asbestos while working for Royal Mail as an electrician in the late 1990s.
Adrian Stewart, who died from mesothelioma, had a lengthy career working as an electrician in different roles involving contact with asbestos. Shaheen pursued a complex claim on behalf of his widow that started with witness evidence from Adrian taken before he died that he was exposed to asbestos with two different companies in the 70s and 80s.
The first route forward was to try and identify these employers and, crucially, to find employers’ liability (EL) insurers against whom a claim could be pursued. Unfortunately, EL could not be traced for either of the companies and it seemed there was no chance in pursuing the claim. As is standard practice as insurers could not be traced, a claim was submitted to the Diffuse Mesothelioma Payment Scheme and a payment was awarded to Mrs Stewart.
Undeterred, Shaheen and Matthew Philips KC decided to press ahead and pursue Royal Mail’s maintenance arm, ROMEC, where Adrian worked as a contractor in the late 1990s.
Royal Mail Plc disclosed documents and were adamant that they were abreast of the dangers of asbestos and had an asbestos removal programme but did not disclose any documents concerning the sorting offices where Adrian worked.
The company vigorously defended the case and served evidence from several witnesses that had worked with Adrian and detailed Royal Mail's policies regarding their knowledge of asbestos dangers. With a settlement looking unlikely the claim was listed for a five-day trial.
Weeks before the trial date Royal Mail admitted liability and Adrian's widow received an additional six-figure sum, which more than doubled her earlier compensation.
Expressing her thanks for Shaheen’s persistence on the multiple occasions when it seemed there were no more options for justice, Mrs Stewart said:
"After the death of my husband from mesothelioma, Shaheen helped and guided me through what turned out to be a very difficult case. She always kept me fully informed and helped me to understand everything. Shaheen always had the time to listen. Shaheen is an outstanding, competent, and informed solicitor who genuinely cares. I cannot thank her enough and would not hesitate to recommend her."
Contact us
For further information about mesothelioma compensation claims, please call Shaheen Mosquera on 0330 460 6817 or email shaheen.mosquera@fieldfisher.com.
Alternatively
- You can speak to our asbestos disease lawyers on freephone 0800 358 3848
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