We were contacted by a grieving son following the sad passing of his father, Mr B, due to asbestos related mesothelioma back in August of 2021, at the young age of 64.
Unfortunately, we did not have the opportunity to interview Mr B senior about his work at a number of power stations over the years and his exposure to asbestos. Initial information obtained from the family, suggested that our client’s late father worked directly for RWE NPower and was likely to have been exposed to asbestos dust in his work as a Non-Destructive Testing manger during the late 1990s.
Issue identified on HMRC work history
As in all mesothelioma claims such as this, we obtained a copy of Mr B’s HMRC work history from the Inland Revenue, but unfortunately, this showed that he was self-employed during his suspected period of exposure to airborne asbestos dust at the power stations. This created a real issue as self-employed workers are of course, unable to sue themselves in law, and the information on Mr B’s suspected history of asbestos dust exposure remained vague.
Witness evidence proved vital
With the help of the family, we were able to speak to a number of witnesses who worked alongside Mr B when he worked at both the Didcot and Tilbury power stations.
One of the witnesses confirmed that at most of the power stations, there would be a large boiler, the size of a cathedral, with hundreds of people working on it and whilst the use of fresh asbestos lagging materials were banned by the power station owners during the late 1960s, the vast legacy of asbestos products and dust remained at the power stations for many years thereafter, including into the mid to late 1990s.
Tenting procedures were brought in by the Central Electricity Generating Board (CEGB) and its successors to remove large sections of asbestos lagging which had been identified at the power station sites. Warning signs were put up around the relevant areas at such times in addition to the tenting facilities in the larger areas in order to restrict the asbestos dust escaping into the general working environment.
However, the witness evidence we obtained in the case confirmed that the deceased’s work involved visiting areas of the power station which had remained untouched for many years and in these areas a great deal of dust would be there, which the deceased would then have to walk through. In addition, the deceased would often have to walk through areas in which they were knee deep in dust and it was believed that some of that dust would have been asbestos dust from lagged pipes up above, which had degraded over time, resulting in asbestos dust dropping to the floor, mixing with other dusts such as coal.
The deceased and his colleagues would have to inspect welds, pipes and structures in such areas and the power station sites were described as being extremely dusty places to work in.
The witness was also able to recall some workers at the power station stripping small sections of asbestos lagging on occasion in order to reach areas of pipework which needed to be repaired. In addition, there were workers dry sweeping on the gantries and lower floors. This caused the dust and debris which had gathered on the floor to rise into the atmosphere which all workers within the vicinity, including the deceased, inhaled.
Occupier blame against the successor to the power stations
As an employer could not be sued in the case, due to the self-employed status of the deceased, there was a need to gather further evidence to show that the successor to the CEGB had control over the work the deceased completed at the power stations.
Thankfully, this was satisfied by speaking to one witness who was able to remember RWE Npower employed managers providing him and the deceased with instructions and guidance on where their work was to be carried out at the power stations. There was always an RWE employed NDT manger dedicated to each power station and the deceased and the witness would report directly to them when working in these areas. We argued that this showed that RWE had the appropriate level of control over the deceased’s work.
This piece of witness evidence proved vital in securing mesothelioma compensation for the family and the claim settled shortly before court proceedings were to be issued for a sum in the high tens of thousands of pounds.
Our client wrote of their specialist asbestos disease solicitor, Mr James Cameron on Trust Pilot:
“James was incredibly professional, understanding and sensitive whilst working on our dad’s case. He understood that this was a difficult time for us and made the whole process very simple. He kept us updated and was always quick to respond to our queries. He is also clearly very good at this job, winning a challenging case for us, I would recommend James and this solicitors to anyone. Thank you!”
If you require assistance in pursuing a mesothelioma claim, or believe you have a valid asbestos claim for any other asbestos disease, then please contact us today on our freephone number 0800 038 6767. Alternatively, head over to the ‘Contact Us’ page, complete the form and we will be in touch.