A thousand Scots victims of a lung condition caused by asbestos yesterday won a landmark legal fight to get compensation.
But in the five years it has taken Scottish judges to overturn a UK legal ruling, 40 people who had pleural plaques have died.
They will never see a payout of around s10,000 which has been denied to them by the UK legal system and the big insurance companies.
Last night, insurance chiefs - who have fought the case tooth and nail - pledged to take it all the way to the UK Supreme Court.
But one of the relatives involved pleaded: "We were confident the Scottish courts would do the right thing. I can only now appeal to these insurance companies also to do the right thing."
Fight At the Court of Session, Lords Hamilton, Eassie and Hardie upheld the 2009 Scottish Parliament Damages Act to allow people - mainly former shipyard and building workers - the right to seek compensation.
For Scotland, it tears up a 2007 House of Lords ruling that compensation would not be paid in the UK.
The big insurers, including AXA, Zurich and Aviva, challenged the law all the way.
Pleural plaques - asbestos particles lodged in the lungs - in itself is not life-threatening. But it can be the first sign of fatal conditions such as mesothelioma, asbestosis and cancer.
Yesterday's ruling found that asbestos-related pleural plaques constitute "personal injury which is not negligible and is therefore actionable under Scots law".
Elaine Darling's dad George O'Donnell, 79, has incurable mesothelioma after being diagnosed with pleural plaques two years ago.
She said: "It has been very hard seeing the effect this has had on my dad. This ruling has come too late to help him but he will be pleased for all those other people who have pleural plaques."
Great-grandad Michael Johnstone, 67, who worked in a board and panels factory in Glasgow, has pleural plaques. He said: "The compensation is for the worry and stress. Knowing that it could develop into something fatal is very unsettling."
Former shipyard worker Robert Adam, now a pensioner, also has the condition. He said: "As joiners, we had to cut asbestos boards.
"There is no doubt our employers kept us doing it long after they knew the dangers."
Widow Annette Smith, 67, lost her husband Alexander to mesothelioma in June 2008, just months after he was diagnosed.
She said: "We knew he only had a few months and we made the most of it. People who have pleural plaques have a high chance of getting this fatal condition.
"It is vital that they are compensated."
Frank Maguire is with Glasgow solicitors firm Thompson, who represent 90 per cent of Scottish victims of pleural plaques. He said 40 Scots with the condition have died since the Lords denied them compensation in 2007.
He added: "This is a great victory for everyone involved. The insurers must now stop their unjust delaying tactics."
But the Association of British Insurers vowed they will now fight the law.
Nick Starling, director of general insurance and health, said: "Insurers remain committed to paying compensation and pay out s200million a year to those with asbestos-related conditions that impact on health, like mesothelioma.
"However, pleural plaques do not impact on quality of life and do not in themselves lead to asbestos-related conditions, such as mesothelioma."
source: dailyrecord.co.uk
www.asbestoscompensationclaim.co.uk
www.claims4scotland.com
