§ Mr. Peter DuncanTo ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many claims have been lodged by former miners for(a) Vibration White Finger and (b) respiratory diseases in Galloway and Upper Nithsdale constituency. [41930]
§ Mr. WilsonClaims for Vibration White Finger (VWF), and respiratory disease have been registered in Galloway and Upper Nithsdale as follows:
Number of claims in Galloway and Upper Nithsdale constituency VWF 129 Respiratory disease 191 These statistics are available on the Department's website at www.dti.gov.uk/coalhealth.
§ Mr. ToddTo ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, pursuant to her answer of 1 February 2002,Official Report, column 615W, on miners' compensation, what progress has been made on deciding how to progress former mineworkers' claims for compensation for respiratory disease from those in (a) safety, (b) salvage, (c) mine rescue, (d) under managers and (e) Group 3 employment. [41755]
§ Mr. WilsonThe Department and the claimants' solicitors representatives have recently agreed the terms on which safety officers and under managers — who were not originally incorporated within the claims handling agreement—may be compensated for respiratory disease. They have also agreed that claims from mines rescue workers and assistant area salvage reclamations managers may be referred to the Dust Reference Panel on a case by case basis, for a decision on the terms on which they may be compensated. Group 3 employment relates to claims for Vibration White Finger, not for respiratory disease.
§ Mr. ToddTo ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what proportion of reports prepared by Healthcall in 2001 on former mineworkers' compensation claims for respiratory disease were(a) returned by the claim handlers and (b) returned by solicitors representing claimants, identifying errors. [41752]
§ Mr. WilsonMedical reports are returned by IRISC, the Department's claims handlers, or the claimant's solicitor either to seek further clarification or to identify clerical errors. In 2001, Healthcall, the company contracted to undertake the delivery of the Medical Assessment Process, MAP, completed and passed 44,341 MAP reports to IRISC. Of this number, 5,011 reports (11 per cent.) were returned by IRISC and 2,701 reports (6 per cent.) were returned by solicitors. In both cases, the issues raised related mainly to clarification of points.
§ Mr. ToddTo ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, pursuant to her answer of 1 February 2002,Official Report, column 615W, on miners' 672W compensation, what policy has been agreed for handling claims for.compensation for respiratory disease by or on behalf of the families of former mineworkers who have received payments for pneumoconiosis previously. [41753]
§ Mr. WilsonIf a claimant has received payments through the Coal Workers Pneumoconiosis Scheme (CWPS) set up in 1974 and is claiming for simple pneumoconiosis in conjunction with COPD, the claim can be processed in accordance with the handling agreement.
§ Mr. ToddTo ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, pursuant to her answer of 1 February 2002,Official Report, column 615W, on miners' compensation, what policy has been agreed for handling industrial injury compensation claims on behalf of the families of former mineworkers who died before 1983. [41754]
§ Mr. WilsonA separate method of assessment is required for those deceased claimants who died prior to 1 January 1983 to reflect the law prior to that date. Under the previous law, a miner's claim for the years that he lost due to respiratory disease and his loss of expectation of life passed on to the estate as part of the claim under the Law Reform Act (LRA) 1934. The compensation paid to the beneficiary of that claim would be deducted from any entitlement that the beneficiary has to a dependency claim under the Fatal Accidents Act (FAA) 1976.
It has been agreed with the claimants' solicitors that these claims will be dealt with in the following manner:
- 1. Where there is a surviving widow, she will receive the higher sum of either the LRA or FAA claim;
- 2. Where the miner leaves a widow who subsequently dies, her estate will receive her dependency entitlement in the period up to her death without any offset for the LRA claim;
- 3. Where a miner leaves a surviving dependent other than a widow, as classified by the FAA, there will he an individual assessment of the claim in accordance with common law principles for pre-1983 deceased cases.