Mesothelioma and the New Era of Low Dose Asbestos - Alan Care, Thomson Snell & Passmore
07/11/14. This is the era of low dose mesothelioma claims. Some higher dose worker claims will continue to arise but the number of claimants will continue to fall over the next couple of years and are reducing as I write this article. One simple fact is the aging exposed population of heavily exposed workers. The majority of exposures to asbestos at work tended to tail off by the 1980s. An example being in the power stations when fuller precautions were introduced in 1983. Mesothelioma has a latency period of between 10-40 years. The heavier exposures tended to be from the 1950s to the 1980s. A useful review is “Asbestos” from the House of Commons Library [Research report 99/81.1999] http://www.parliament.uk/business/publications/research/briefing-papers/RP99-81/asbestos
The legacy we all face is that the world production of asbestos in August 1978 totalled 6,018,450 tonnes. [1979/80 "Asbestos. Vol. 1: final report of the advisory committee" HMSO]. In 1975 139,185 tonnes of asbestos were imported into the UK. This asbestos was used ubiquitously in just about every building construction in the UK being used as insulation and fire proofing to comply with regulations.
A substantial amount of this asbestos remains in-situ so members of the public will inevitably have been exposed [or will be exposed] to asbestos. Clearly some individuals will be more susceptible than others. Proof of susceptibility is provided by so called “shake down” claims for wives who launder work clothing where often the husband who was more heavily exposed does not develop mesothelioma...
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