We have a panel of expert solicitors who specialise in obtaining compensation for people who have suffered as a result of their occupation.

Compensation is often available for industrial deafness or hearing impairment, vibration white finger,
dermititis, asbestosis or emphysemia, repetitive strain injury and many other types.

If your doctor has diagnosed any of the above then it is important that you contact us quickly, as strict time limits apply based on your date of knowledge of the symptoms.

We will need to discuss your employment history along with any lifestyle factors that may have contributed to your symptoms.

Many high-street solicitors simply do not have the experience of dealing with this type of claim, so we will ensure that your case is dealt with by the most appropriate specialists.

Details of Industrial Diseases

Vibration White Finger

The mining, steel and engineering industry has historically been exposed to vibration, but any industry that deals with the following:

• · Percussive tools e.g., riveting, caulking, fettling and swaging.
• · Grinding, including pedestal and hand-held grinders.
• · Pneumatic drills and hammers, including rotary hammers.
• · Chain saws, including garden machinery.
• · Any machinery that constantly vibrated.

• · Finger whitening.
• · Numbness.
• · Tingling.
• · Reduced dexterity and ability to carry out common functions.
• · Damage to nerves and impair blood circulation.

Under the limitations act 1980 a person has 3 years to pursue a claim for compensation from the time they knew, or ought to have known that the problems with their hands and fingers were caused by using the vibrating tools. If a claim is not pursued within the time limit the claim will become statute barred out of time.

Industrial Deafness

Workers at special risk of industrial deafness are usually those in a heavy productive industry, such as.

• · Metal work.
• · Drilling and quarrying.
• · Stone cutting.
• · The use of noisy machinery, as in textiles, printing.
• · Woodcutting.
• · Agriculture.

Employers from 1990 must protect their workers ears with earmuffs and/or earplugs. If you must work in an excessively noisy environment, you should wear protectors. You should also wear them when you are using power tools.

Court decisions allow a claim to be made against all employers after 1963 where no hearing protection was provided and worked in excessive noises above 90 dB. To make a claim for compensation you need to have a hearing loss of 10%.

Working in noisy environments for at least 8 hours a day, 5 days a week for 12 months without adequate hearing protection is likely to cause damage. Very high levels may cause damage after relatively short periods. Workers who have been exposed to excessive noise levels will develop symptoms that show their hearing has been affected.

• · Speech can be heard but the words aren't clear.
• · Sufferer may tend to speak too loudly because they can't hear their own voices clearly.
• · Difficulty hearing a conversation against a noisy background.

Under the limitations act 1980 a person has 3 years to pursue a claim for compensation. From the time they knew or ought to of known that their problems were caused by working in a noisy environment. If a claim is not pursued within the time limit the claim will become statute barred “out of time”.

Asbestos Related Conditions

There are a number of conditions, which may arise as a consequence of exposure to asbestos: Types of asbestos-related conditions:

• · Pleural thickening
• · Pleural plaques Asbestosis
• · Lung cancer
• · Mesothelioma

Typical awards for “general damages” vary from £5000.00 for a provisional damages award in a Pleural plaque case to £50.0000 in a case of Mesothelioma.

The widows or other dependants of a person who has died from an asbestos-related illness can bring a claim for compensation on behalf of the estate of the deceased and for the loss of that part of the deceased’s income that would have been used for the benefit of the dependants.

Other dust that can cause lung diseases

These include chromate, in the manufacture of chromate from the ore; nickel compounds in the refining of nickel, benzpyrenes in coke-oven work; uranium and radon; and arsenic compounds in mining.

Some of the work environments, or trades, in which people came, or still may come in contact with asbestos are:

• · Shipyards / Shipbuilders
• · Shipyard Workers -- including military
• · Boiler or Engine Rooms
• · Home Improvement)
• · Custodian / Handyman
• · Telephone engineers
• · Schools
• · Metal lathers
• · Power Plants
• · Steamfitters
• · Military (Navy/Army tank units/Motor pool)
• · Construction sites
• · Longshoremen
• · Hospitals
• · Operational Engineers
• · Electricians
• · Asbestos plant workers
• · Boiler Makers
• · Merchant Marines
• · Fire-fighters
• · Asbestos workers/insulators/laggers
• · Cement plant workers
• · Steel Workers (plants and construction)
• · Automotive and other repair shops
• · Loading Docks
• · Heating and Air Conditioning
• · Pipe fitters
• · Plumbers
• · Railroad Workers
• · Utility Workers / Power Companies
• · Glass factory workers
• · Oil Refinery
• · Chemical Plants
• · Industrial Plants
• · Industrial Painter
• · Sheet metal workers Laborers

Is a malignant tumor of the lining of the lung (pleura) or abdomen (peritoneum). The abdominal form is less common. The disease is significantly related to exposure to asbestos, especially the blue and brown varieties. However in a small number of cases there is not such history of exposure. Those at risk are miners, manufacturers of asbestos, builders and demolition workers and even residents in the neighborhood of blue asbestos working. While the exposure time may have been only minimal there is no safe threshold of dose below, which there is no risk of asbestos related disease. The onset of the disease is delayed, often by some 20 to 50 years. It affects men and women but the 'attack rate' of the tumour in the exposed population is only a very small percentage around 5% .

What causes Mesothelioma?

Asbestos exposure is the main cause of Mesothelioma. After these fibres are breathed in, they travel to the ends of small air passages and reach the pleura where they cause physical damage to mesothelial cells that may result in cancer. In addition, they also cause injury to lung cells that can result in lung cancer and/or asbestosis (replacement of lung tissue by scar tissue). If swallowed, these fibres can reach the abdominal cavity where they have a role in causing peritoneal Mesothelioma.

Exposure to asbestos, though mostly occupational, can also be environmental, or familial by household contamination, through the work clothes of an asbestos worker for instance.

Beginning 15 years after the onset of exposure, about 6% of asbestos workers die of Mesothelioma. In one study of asbestos insulation workers, the death rate from Mesothelioma was over 300 times higher than in the general population.

What are the signs and symptoms of Mesothelioma?

Early symptoms of Mesotheliomas are not specific to the disease. People often ignore them or mistake them for common, minor ailments. Most people with Mesothelioma have symptoms for only 2 to 3 months before they are diagnosed. About one-fourth has symptoms for at least six months prior to their diagnosis.

Over half of patients with pleural Mesothelioma have pain in the lower back or at the side of the chest. Many report shortness of breath. Smaller percentages have trouble swallowing, cough, fever, sweating, fatigue, and weight loss. Other symptoms include hoarseness, coughing up blood, swelling of the face and arms, muscle weakness, and sensory loss.

Symptoms of peritoneal Mesothelioma include abdominal (belly) pain, weight loss, nausea, and vomiting. There may also be a hernia, fluid in the abdominal cavity or a mass in the abdomen.

A person with any of these symptoms who has been exposed to asbestos should see a doctor right away.