$6 million in compensation has been awarded to seventeen victims of asbestos in Tasmania under the new Asbestos Disease Compensation Scheme which was implemented last year.
Of these seventeen victims, twelve were found to be suffering from fatal asbestos related diseases including mesothelioma and lung cancer. While the other five were found to have been suffering mainly from asbestosis.
These 17 asbestos victims were exposed to asbestos whilst working in industries such as cement, mechanics, paper manufacturers and roofing.
While this scheme is in place to compensate victims of asbestos, they may still chose to pursue an asbestos compensation claim through common law instead.
Legislation in other Australian states such as NSW, Victoria and South Australia also assist victims of asbestos with pursuing an asbestos compensation claim including both mesothelioma compensation and asbestosis compensation.
These legal avenues are extremely important as asbestos related diseases are a major health concern for Australia as we have one of the highest rates of asbestos related illnesses in the world.
