Insurers Axa, Aviva, RSA and Zurich have failed in their efforts to overturn Scottish legislation allowing claims to be brought for asbestos-related conditions, such as pleural plaques.
The Damages (Asbestos-related Conditions) (Scotland) Act, which came into force in March 2010 overuling the barring of such claims under Rothwell v Chemical and Insulating Co and Another heard in 2007 at the House of Lords.
The Outer Court of Session rejected the review but in January 2010 the decision was appealed in the Inner Court.
The insurers are preparing to appeal the decision to the Supreme Court.
Nick Starling, the ABI’s Director of General Insurance and Health, said: “We are disappointed by this judgment. The insurers who brought this judicial review did so because there are fundamental legal principles at stake, and they remain confident that there is significant substance in their grounds for challenging the Damages Act.The insurers are therefore preparing to appeal the judgment to the Supreme Court.
“The Damages Act is fundamentally flawed as it ignores overwhelming medical evidence that pleural plaques are symptomless, and the well-established principle of negligence that compensation is payable only when there is physical harm.
He added: “Insurers remain fully committed to paying compensation and pay out £200m 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: PostOnline
