Claimant law firm Thompsons has hit out at insurers over compensation payments for mesothelioma victims.
Thompsons has called for insurers to return funds to the Government that have been deducted from total compensation payouts as a result of State payments made to claimants under the Pneumoconiosis Workers Compensation Act 1979.
Ian McFall, national head of asbestos litigation at Thompsons, said: "Negligent employers and their insurers should not be entitled to benefit from state funds which are intended to compensate mesothelioma victims. It offends the principle that the wrongdoer should pay."
Thompsons's submission to the Department of Work and Pensions also calls for the creation of a safety net for claimants where an insurer no longer exists or cannot be traced.