After discovering that three workers have been exposed to asbestos fibres, the highly toxic substance linked to several respiratory ailments including the deadly lung cancer mesothelioma, their employer has been fined by the HSE.
Personal injury solicitors familiar with the case report that Fadil Adil, the building contractor, had been overseeing a Bromley High Street demolition project that had three of his employees tearing down building parts with sledge hammers and other related hand held demolition equipment. The Health and Safety Executive told the City of London Magistrates’ Court in a recent hearing that the building’s ceiling contained insulation boards that were impregnated with asbestos, meaning that Mr Adil’s three workers could very well have been exposed to a substance responsible for millions of pounds in personal injury claims every year.
The HSE also found that Mr Adil lacked any sort of training in managing construction sites. Moreover, he was lacking any sort of asbestos license, which would have permitted him to remove the deadly material safely, he never carried out an asbestos survey, and he also neglected to provide his employees with any sort of guidance in regards to the presence of the potentially deadly building material, leaving himself open for huge liabilities if his workers decide to make personal injury compensation claims.
Mr Adil, a Bromley native, was given a fine of £19,300 and told to pay £7,654 in court costs, after he admitted to breaching regulations pertaining to the control of asbestos and to the design and management of construction efforts.
One of the largest causes of work related deaths in the UK currently, asbestos related disease can be crippling for afflicted employees.