Insurers attacked

The TUC has launched an attack on the insurance industry for trying to avoid compensating workers who have been injured or made ill by their employer’s negligence.

Hugh Robertson, head of health and safety at the TUC, gave an interview to the Independent on Sunday newspaper in which he roundly criticised insurers for their vigorous attempts to restrict claims for compensation.

Robertson particularly highlighted recent legal actions in both Scotland and England concerning the asbestos-related condition mesothelioma. In these cases some insurance companies have been quibbling about the point at which people who have been exposed to asbestos become entitled to compensation.

Robertson said: “The insurance industry has spent the last decade trying to avoid their moral responsibility in respect to people with asbestos diseases. The real injustice is that the insurers ... had no qualms in taking the insurance policies from employers who believed their workers were insured, and now they’re doing everything to wriggle out of their commitments.”

Robertson also commented on allegations that the insurance industry was invited by justice minister Jonathan Djanogly to formulate the government’s consultation on changes to legal aid in a way which was highly beneficial to them. Robertson said: “The insurance companies have been lobbying hard to make sure the courts can’t be used in the future.”