Electrician's family secure more than £300,000 damages

Dushal Mehta was instructed by Mr P following his diagnosis with mesothelioma. He was born on 21 January 1951 and had spent his entire working career employed as an electrician. Mr P was working as an electrician at the time of his diagnosis.

He recalled being exposed to asbestos whilst working as an apprentice and later as a qualified electrician for Drake & Gorham which later became known as Drake & Scull Engineering Limited.  He worked for this company between approximately 1967 and 1975.  Drake & Scull Engineering Limited was subsequently taken over by Emcor Group (UK) Limited.

Mr P was diagnosed with mesothelioma at Epsom General Hospital.  He was aged 62 at the time of his diagnosis.  He had no intention of retiring as he loved working and had intended to continue working full time to age 67 or 68 and then work part time to age 70.  Mr P had a fantastic reputation as an extremely skilled electrician.  There were many previous work colleagues who provided detailed statements setting out the many qualities and skills that Mr P had as an electrician.

At a relatively early stage in the case, the solicitors acting Emcor Group admitted liability but despite having been provided with the financial documentation to settle the claim, they did not make an offer in settlement of Mr P's case in his lifetime.  This was despite Mr P's desire to settle his claim in life.  After Mr P sadly died, Emcor Group failed to make any offer and Dushal had no alternative but to issue Court proceedings on behalf of his widow to bring about a speedy resolution of the claim.

Despite the early admission of liability, the solicitors left it until a week before the final hearing to make any offers in settlement.  Mrs P's claim eventually settled for the sum of £330,000.

The settlement took into account the loss of earnings until age 70 and Mrs P's claim for her own financial dependency on account of her husband's death.  Mr P, prior to his mesothelioma diagnosis, was extremely healthy and was expected to live for another 21 years had he not been diagnosed with mesothelioma.

At the end of the case, Mrs P said the following:

"Dushal Mehta was, from the beginning to the end of the case, very professional and caring, always keeping us informed in a way that we could understand."

Contact us

For further information about mesothelioma claims, please call Dushal Mehta on 03304606751 or email dushal.mehta@fieldfisher.com.

Alternatively

• You can speak to our asbestos disease lawyers on freephone 0800 358 3848
• email us: personalinjury@fieldfisher.com
• Complete the short online enquiry form

All enquiries are completely free of charge and we will investigate all funding options for you including no win, no fee.