£175,000 payout for plumber with terminal asbestos disease

A hospital plumber, who has been told he has only months to live after developing mesothelioma, has received £175,000 in compensation.

Alan Ward, with the help of his union Unison, pursued an 18-month personal injury claim against Yorkshire and Humber Strategic Health Authority when he developed the cancer of the lung lining.

The 61-year-old had been exposed to asbestos while working in a number of hospitals in the Wakefield area between 1964 and 1972, including removing asbestos lagging at Clayton Hospital and at Oulton Hall Hospital. He had never been warned about the dangers to his health during his time as a plumber and had not been provided with any protection.

Yorkshire and Humber Strategic Health Authority settled the claim out of court.Dave Prentis, UNISON’s General Secretary, said: “Alan is one of a growing number of workers whose health has been fatally damaged just through going to work. 

“Employers have to face up to their responsibilities to make sure they don’t put their workers at risk of injury or death.”