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Monday 12 March 2012

Average injury claim payout falls

Compensation totaling some €210 million was awarded last year in respect of 9,833 personal injury claimants.
In its review of 2011, Injuriesboard.ie said the highest award granted was €829,444 – the largest payout in its history and more than double the biggest sum received by a claimant in 2010 (€387,286).
The number of awards granted increased by 17 per cent (1,453) and the sum paid out increased by 12 per cent, or €22.8 million, to €209.8 million. The average sum awarded to claimants fell last year by 3.8 per cent to €21,339.
Chief executive Patricia Byron said the drop reflected the reduced number of work-related claims being processed and the fact that lower losses of earnings were being incurred due to reduced salaries across the economy.
More than three quarters of awards (76.5 per cent) were for injuries sustained in road traffic incidents with public (15.1 per cent) and workplace injuries (8.4 per cent) accounting for the remainder.
The average motoring claim amounted to €20,438 with workplace and public liability claims amounting to €27,102 and €22,686 respectively.

Read More - http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/breaking/2012/0309/breaking27.html

Thursday 8 March 2012

Asbestos victims denied compensation

Hundreds of asbestosis sufferers across Britain are dying without proper compensation due to government inaction, a group of lawyers claimed today.
Figures obtained by not-for-profit campaign group Association of Personal Injury Lawyers (APIL) show that mesothelioma, a deadly asbestos-related lung cancer, was recorded as the underlying cause of 177 deaths in Scotland in 2010 compared with 149 deaths in 2006 and 140 in 2007.
Many workers who develop the fatal disease are unable to pursue claims for damages because they can no longer trace the employers who exposed them to asbestos or the employers' insurance companies.
The onset of symptoms often comes decades after a worker has inhaled asbestos fibres, during which time employers go out of business and insurance documents can be lost or destroyed.
In 2010 the government pledged to establish a "fund of last resort" which would act as a safety net for those unable to obtain compensation as a result.

Read More - http://www.morningstaronline.co.uk/news/content/view/full/116329