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Actuaries sidelined
Institute of Actuaries president Peter Clark has criticised the insurance industry for downgrading the role of actuaries. He said: ‘The appointed actuary is often the only person within a life company whose task it is to protect that..
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01 December 2000
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125 - 01 December 2000
Cyberliability
Underwritten by Hiscox Insurance, Lloyd’s broker R K Harrison has launched a cyberliability product, Safeonline. This covers financial loss occasioned by breach of intellectual property rights, hackers, misuse of confidential information,..
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01 December 2000
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125 - 01 December 2000
CGNU leaves London
With the sale of Marlborough Underwriting Agency, CGNU’s Lloyd’s managing agency, to Warren Buffet’s Berkshire Hathaway Group, CGNU cuts all ties with the London market.
This and earlier moves will leave the much-merged entity free..
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01 December 2000
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125 - 01 December 2000
Firestone blows up demand
Lloyd’s underwriters in the product recall market have noted a boost in demand for recall cover, sparked by the Firestone fiasco. A niche market, estimated at US$100mn worldwide, could become a more important component of cover as awareness g..
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01 December 2000
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125 - 01 December 2000
‘High time that the Lloyd’s litigation … came to an end’
Thus urged Mr Justice Cresswell, delivering his 600-page judgment in the high court in Jaffray v Lloyd’s
. He strongly urged both sides to agree a genuinely independent panel to oversee remaining disputes, but neither side seem inclined for..
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01 December 2000
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125 - 01 December 2000
Ombudsman RSA decision overturned
On appeal to the high court, Royal & SunAlliance (RSA) succeeded in overturning a decision of the Pensions Ombudsman in an annuity dispute with policyholders.
The court rejected the Ombudsman’s view that guaranteed annuity rates should..
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01 December 2000
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125 - 01 December 2000
SIA flight SQ006
Accepting that an attempt to take off from the wrong runway – striking maintenance equipment – was the cause of the Boeing 747 crash on takeoff at Taipei airport for Los Angeles, Singapore Airlines (SIA) chief executive and deputy..
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01 December 2000
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125 - 01 December 2000
Derbyshire report
The master and crew of bulk oil carrier Derbyshire
, which sank in 1980 with the loss of 44 lives, have finally been cleared of bad seamanship. This was through the publication of the report by Mr Justice Colman, which rejected the view of the..
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01 December 2000
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125 - 01 December 2000
HMO class actions consolidated
Around two dozen class actions against giant health insurers around the US have been consolidated for hearing by US district judge Federico Moreno in Miami.
This is the decision of the Judicial Panel on Multi-District Litigation, the consolidation..
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01 December 2000
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125 - 01 December 2000
Case update
Claimant in liquidation entitled to interim payment
A claimant was entitled to receive an interim payment under a judgment on liability only, even though he may later be required to repay the sum – and be unable to do so.
Harmon CFEM Facade..
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01 December 2000
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125 - 01 December 2000
Stress at work, and elsewhere
Recent research commissioned by the International Stress Management Association (ISMA) and Royal & SunAlliance indicates that some 70% of adults in the UK have experienced stress at work. Of these, almost half saw their stress levels..
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01 December 2000
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125 - 01 December 2000
Awards and settlements
‘Where there’s muck, there’s brass,’
(old Yorkshire saying).
Mishandling of bank account leads to a £300,000 settlement (shortly before court hearing) for a farmer who, in the course of a 10-year dispute, used a dung..
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01 December 2000
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125 - 01 December 2000
People on the move
Leading actuarial firm Bacon & Woodrow
(B&W) will split on 1 January 2001, with a demerger of the insurance business from the employee benefits consultancy. The insurance arm will merge with that of Deloitte & Touche, and the larger..
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01 December 2000
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125 - 01 December 2000
Motor cover deregulation: Israeli-US linkup
From 1 January 2001 Israel is withdrawing the uniform tariff system for motor insurance and allowing competition between insurers.
To gather the required loss experience and other information for the new underwriting criteria, New York-based..
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01 December 2000
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125 - 01 December 2000
Insurance Ombudsman study
Senior academic Peter Tyldesley has been appointed to carry through a study of the work of the Insurance Ombudsman Bureau (IOB), with full access to records.
Initiated by the former ombudsman, Laurie Slade, who sees ‘an objective evaluation of..
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01 December 2000
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125 - 01 December 2000
Solicitors’ complaints
Reporting that the number of live complaints on file at the Office for the Supervision of Solicitors (OSS) have fallen below 8,000 – with a target of 6,000 by year-end – the director criticised the continuing behaviour. Some firms, he..
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01 December 2000
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125 - 01 December 2000
After-the-event revolt
The introduction of after-the-event insurance (AEI), and the ability of the successful claimant to be reimbursed for AEI premium by the losing party, have led to somewhat of an insurer revolt.
With a more than 90% success rate of the yearly 350,000..
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01 December 2000
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125 - 01 December 2000
e-Witness
A new internet service established by a group of doctors, lawyers and healthcare professionals can speed the settlement of personal injury claims.
E-Witness offers a national medical reporting service by facilitating medical reports on claimants for..
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01 December 2000
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125 - 01 December 2000
E-communication ‘could have been better’
So says David Trower, strategic policy manager at the Data Protection Commission (DPC), commenting on contradictions between DTI rules on the checking of employees’ emails (see LRI
124) through ‘routine access’ and the stricter..
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01 December 2000
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125 - 01 December 2000
Germans consider direct settlement
Following the success of direct claims settlement in a number of other European countries, German motor insurers are considering introduction of the same system.
The plan – not yet receiving 100% support – would provide that the insurer..
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01 December 2000
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125 - 01 December 2000
New opening for motor insurers?
The fashionable motorised scooter known as ‘Go-ped’ is a motor vehicle, according to the Queen’s Bench decision in Director of Public Prosecutions v Saddington
(26 October 2000, summary in The Times
of 1 November 2000). As a..
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01 December 2000
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125 - 01 December 2000
PPB levy remains the same
The levy on general and life insurers, by the Policyholders’ Protection Board, will remain the same for the fifth year in succession. This is partly because the KWELM claims have crystallised more slowly than expected.
During the year ending..
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01 December 2000
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125 - 01 December 2000
Case funding
Claims Direct has launched a new scheme, giving up to £1,500 early funding for solicitors acting in personal injury cases. This to soften the cashflow problems arising from the end of the legal aid scheme. A condition is that a Claims Direct..
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01 December 2000
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125 - 01 December 2000
Building environmental cover
Zurich Building Guarantees has launched cover for environmental liabilities arising from new, or newly converted, owner-occupied and rented homes. This may be added to existing policies Newbuild, Rebuild, Newstyle and Custombuild.
It provides cover..
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01 December 2000
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125 - 01 December 2000
Transatlantic PI service
A transatlantic professional indemnity service, specialising in construction-related claims, has been launched by C R Vince & Associates, Devonshire Claims Service and Courtney Smith: Triton Claims. On offer is a range of loss adjusting, claims..
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01 December 2000
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125 - 01 December 2000
PIA raises IFA’s excess
The Personal Investment Authority (PIA) has raised the excesses allowed for Independent Financial Advisers (IFAs) professional liability insurance. Although addressing the wishes of most members, the Association of Independent Financial Advisers..
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01 December 2000
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125 - 01 December 2000
Chinese patent law
A change in patent law allows Chinese citizens and foreign nations the right to bring action against their patent office. This to bring it into line with World Trade Organisation specifications on intellectual property prior to China’s..
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01 December 2000
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125 - 01 December 2000
Mortgage lenders bar sole practitioners
Allegations of discrimination against sole practitioner solicitors by mortgage lenders could lead to referral to the Office of Fair Trading.
The Law Society has already raised this matter with the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML), seeing it not..
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01 December 2000
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125 - 01 December 2000
Six former executives and employees of JCO, site of Japan’s worst-ever nuclear accident, have been arrested on suspicion of professional negligence through systematic violations of safety proceedings. The accident, which took place in 1999 at..
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01 December 2000
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125 - 01 December 2000
American pilots lose US$45.5mn fine appeal
An appeal from the American Airlines’ union, representing more than 10,000 pilots, was rejected in the US fifth circuit court of appeals. They sought to postpone paying a US$45.5mn fine as damages to the airline, American, in respect of a..
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01 December 2000
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125 - 01 December 2000
Concorde
At a meeting with lawyers representing victims’ families, Air France and its insurers have agreed to make further interim payments and work towards a final settlement that would include payments from the other companies implicated in the..
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01 December 2000
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125 - 01 December 2000
Oil spill payouts to rise
The International Maritime Organisation (IMO) has approved a 50% rise in compensation limits for oil tanker spills. Shipowners’ liability limits will also rise by 50%. And the International Oil Pollution Compensation Fund will increase funds..
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01 December 2000
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125 - 01 December 2000
Exxon/seafood processors deal
Exxon Mobil has won the agreement of the ninth US circuit court of appeals, against a decision by the US district court in Alaska, allowing a settlement with a group of Seattle seafood processors to proceed. This will allow the group to claim a..
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01 December 2000
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125 - 01 December 2000
Express Samina: damages and prosecution
The first damages, US$250,000, have been awarded to a surviving Greek passenger, Stathis Livieratos. Minoan Dolphins is to appeal, apparently with the backing of its passenger liability insurer West of England P&I Club. The total sought by..
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01 December 2000
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125 - 01 December 2000
Erika legislation?
The London P&I Club, agreeing a 10% general increase in advance call for the 2001/2 policy year, has warned of possible new liability legislation in the wake of Erika
and other pollutions and losses. Expressing concern at the possibility of EU..
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01 December 2000
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125 - 01 December 2000
Tunnel fire at Kaprun
After years of trouble-free operation of funicular railways at ski resorts, the tunnel fire at Kaprun in Austria gives a first appearance of a true accident. But investigators are seeking cause and apportionment of blame. The investigative team does..
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01 December 2000
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125 - 01 December 2000
Fire extinguishers removed
With the support of the Railway Inspectorate of the Health & Safety Executive, London Underground is removing fire extinguishers from passenger carriages. The reason given is vandalism, with 44 hours of delays each month and an annual..
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01 December 2000
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125 - 01 December 2000
Track record
Not good. The report by rail regulator Tom Winsor two months before Hatfield – the latest fatal rail crash – expressed alarm at the rise in broken rails. He found that Railtrack had tolerated ‘large numbers of defects’ and..
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01 December 2000
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125 - 01 December 2000
Aventis to pay US$1bn for Iron Mountain cleanup
Chemical giant Aventis CropSciences (USA) has agreed one of the largest-ever toxic waste cleanup settlements in respect of pollution from the Californian Iron Mountain copper mine. The deal was struck with the US Environmental Protection Agency..
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01 December 2000
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125 - 01 December 2000
Contaminated land briefing
A useful briefing note from Linklaters & Alliance Environmental Law Group concisely reviews the new contaminated land regime in force from 1 April of this year.
It provides clear explanation of the objectives, examination of changes from the..
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01 December 2000
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125 - 01 December 2000
Dams at risk
A report by the Chartered Insurance Institute highlights weather-related climate change risks. One aspect addressed is the risk of dam failure – in the UK, not in uninsured third-world countries – with up to 1,300 in danger.
The..
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01 December 2000
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125 - 01 December 2000
Government agencies blamed for floods
There has been no legal action as yet, but this presents a sign of wider apportionment of blame. Residents of Roberts-bridge in Surrey say a strong contributor to their recent flood damage was the design of a bypass that interfered with the natural..
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01 December 2000
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125 - 01 December 2000
Meteorite or Mir?
A test run for the meteorite that threatens to destroy earth in the not-too-distant-future? The Russian Aerospace Agency has informed countries that may be overflown by the aging Mir space station that plans for ditching in a safe area of the..
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01 December 2000
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125 - 01 December 2000
Tax on factoring differences
A bill in progress introduced by Florida and California congressmen Shaw and Stark would require factoring companies that buy structured settlement payments to pay a 40% federal excise tax on the difference between value of settlement and cash..
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01 December 2000
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125 - 01 December 2000
Structured settlements in Ohio
Legislation providing for recipients of structured settlements to have the necessary legal and financial advice is to be signed into law by the state governor of Ohio.
Ohio is the 16th state to take action to protect recipients from selling their..
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01 December 2000
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125 - 01 December 2000
US RSI review
Twelve of the leading US property/casualty insurers have filed suit in the Fourth Circuit court of appeals, seeking review of ergonomic standards, due for implementation on 1 January 2001, designed to reduce the risk of workers suffering repetitive..
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01 December 2000
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125 - 01 December 2000
Breast implant suits prohibited
A federal judge in Detroit has overturned the recent opinion from the bankruptcy court judge on individual breast implant litigation. This was through prohibition of the filing of lawsuits by women, unwilling to accept the terms of the Dow Chemical..
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01 December 2000
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125 - 01 December 2000
Coke pays largest discrimination settlement
Coca-Cola has settled a race discrimination class action for US$192.5mn, the largest such payout to date. As in the previous largest settlement, that of Texaco in 1997, Coke’s settlement includes the operation of systematic changes including..
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01 December 2000
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125 - 01 December 2000
US$80mn to vehicle safety questioner
A Californian jury award of US$125mn – in relation to the safety of FMC Corp’s Bradley Fighting Vehicle – was reduced by the judge to US$80mn.
But this was not a typical whistleblower case – the main protagonist (though at..
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01 December 2000
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125 - 01 December 2000
‘Insurer asbestos woes grow’
‘Large makers of asbestos products may have exhausted their products liability limits, but that may not mean they’re out of luck in tapping their insurance policies. Jennifer Biggs, a consulting actuary for Tillinghast-Towers Perrin in..
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01 December 2000
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125 - 01 December 2000
A M Best finds claims increasing
Analysis of 1999 statutory disclosures shows property/ casualty insurers’ growing losses from asbestos-related liabilities as offset by improved loss trends on the environmental front, as detailed in a special report by ratings agency A M..
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01 December 2000
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125 - 01 December 2000
Fallout from Owens filing
As a knock-on from the Owens Corning bankruptcy filing, analysts have expressed disquiet on the future of auto supplier Federal-Mogul.
‘The bottom line is that ballooning cash asbestos payments, we believe, will likely cause debt holders to..
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01 December 2000
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125 - 01 December 2000
Owens Corning bank agreement
Owens Corning has been granted an emergency restraining order, with agreement by its lender banks, that prevents a ‘cash grab’ on overseas affiliates that are not part of Owens’ chapter 11 bankruptcy filing.
But the 47 banks..
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01 December 2000
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125 - 01 December 2000
Spies may sue
The Department of Trade & Industry has confirmed that, under the Employment Relations Act 1999, members of the security services will be able to take their employers to industrial tribunals for a range of grievances, including discrimination..
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01 December 2000
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125 - 01 December 2000
HSE ‘name and shame’ campaign
The Health & Safety Executive (HSE) has launched a campaign to highlight the extent of health and safety crime, backed by a new publication Health & Safety Offenses and Penalties
listing some 1,600 convictions. This is backed by full..
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01 December 2000
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125 - 01 December 2000
Increase in tribunal and ACAS claims
The recently-reported 32% increase in individual claims (164,000 in the past financial year) against employers brought before tribunals has prompted a call from the Confederation of British Industry (CBI) for their reform, with full hearings taking..
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01 December 2000
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125 - 01 December 2000
Disability claims analysis
Analysis carried out by the Institute of Employment Rights of the first 2,500 cases brought under the Disability Discrimination Act suggests many disabled people are unaware of their rights. Two-thirds of the cases were started by a union or another..
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01 December 2000
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125 - 01 December 2000
Boxing clever
The Metropolitan Police are requiring every officer and civilian worker to receive training in the proper lifting of boxes. This is in response to the excessive sick leave claimed due to bad backs, and also the £400,000 compensation won by a..
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01 December 2000
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125 - 01 December 2000
Sexual orientation
Discrimination under the Sex Discrimination Act (1975) includes discrimination based on sexual orientation; thus held a Scottish employment tribunal in Ministry of Defence v MacDonald. Considering dismissal of an officer of the Royal Air Force,..
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01 December 2000
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125 - 01 December 2000
16-hour cutoff discriminatory
When she fell ill, Sylvia Hayes, a school cleaner and dinner lady, was refused benefits under a Barclayloan Protection policy because she had previously worked for less than 16 hours a week. At tribunal, supported by the Equal Opportunities..
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01 December 2000
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125 - 01 December 2000
Power line study
There has been yet another study on the possible links between proximity of power lines and childhood cancer. In this, comparison of 3,500 children with cancer to a similar number of controls found no link to their having lived near power lines. A..
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01 December 2000
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125 - 01 December 2000
Cold drugs withdrawn – in the US only, so far
Following a warning from the US Food & Drug Agency (FDA) on risks arising from the use of popular cold remedies and appetite suppressants containing phenylpropanolamine (PPA), up to 400 are to be withdrawn from the US market.
These include US..
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01 December 2000
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125 - 01 December 2000
Doctors’ hours of work
While not objectively quantified, common sense suggests a number of medical errors must link to the very long hours worked by some hospital doctors, especially those up to and including Registrar grade.
A decision of the European Court of Justice..
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01 December 2000
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125 - 01 December 2000
Hospital problems
Seemingly endless. The risk from contaminated instruments is highlighted by Prof John Collinge of the Imperial College School of Medicine, suggesting that half the instruments used in tonsillectomies could be contaminated by vCJD.
While the risk in..
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01 December 2000
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125 - 01 December 2000
Oral polio vaccine
Batches of oral polio vaccine, as used on more than 11mn children since guidelines issued in 1989 following warning from the Southwood inquiry of 1988 that vaccines could provide a route for human BSE infection, have been recalled. The Medicines..
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01 December 2000
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125 - 01 December 2000
More parents sue over retained organs
Families of dead children whose organs were retained without permission have launched action against the Diana Princess of Wales Children’s Hospital in Birmingham. This follows a report by an independent pathologist indicating the abuses were..
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01 December 2000
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125 - 01 December 2000
‘Wrongful birth’
A French appeal court has ruled that there is entitlement to damages in a case of ‘wrongful birth’. The mother of the now-17-year-old boy had been infected with German measles (rubella) early in pregnancy; her son, Nicholas Perruche, was..
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01 December 2000
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125 - 01 December 2000
Too many babies
The parents of triplets are to receive compensation from the fertility clinic where they received treatment. They alleged they never agreed to the implantation of three embryos, asking for two maximum. In court, Mr Justice Hooper found that..
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01 December 2000
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125 - 01 December 2000
Driving problems
A bill requiring increased safety reporting,
HR 5164, has been signed by US president Bill Clinton, having being passed by the US Senate after approval by the House of Representatives. This was instead of pursuing the tougher McCain Bill, in the..
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01 December 2000
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125 - 01 December 2000
Window blinds recall
The US Consumer Product Safety Commission has ordered the recall of up to 800mn window blinds because of the risk to young children of strangulation. Since 1991, 130 reports of strangulation from blind cords have been logged; apparently the pull..
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01 December 2000
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125 - 01 December 2000
Mobile handsfree phone kits
New evidence that handsfree mobile phone kits can significantly increase the brain’s exposure to radiation is published in the November issue of the Consumers’ Association magazine Which?
This confirms its earlier findings published in..
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01 December 2000
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125 - 01 December 2000
Garden pesticide risk
Questions of a link between common garden pesticides and the onset of Parkinson’s disease are raised by research using rats by scientists (Tim Greenamyre et al) at Emory University, Atlanta. The substances are known as Derris Dust in Britain..
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01 December 2000
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125 - 01 December 2000
OP action dropped
Claims related to health impairment from the use of organophosphates, particularly as sheep dip, have been dropped by 25 farm workers. This was on the advice of their solicitor, Patrick Allen, who said failure to produce proof of a link between..
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01 December 2000
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125 - 01 December 2000
TV reporter sues police
Undercover reporter Donal MacIntyre is taking action against the Chief Constable of Kent, with financial backing from the BBC. He seeks compensation for libel by Kent Police, who said he had caused them to waste considerable time investigating his..
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01 December 2000
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125 - 01 December 2000
Pupil seeks school fees
The first pupil to use the Family Law (Scotland) Act seeks to force her father to pay school fees. Nicole Lavelle seeks £700 a month or a lump sum of £15,000 so that she can continue to study for A-levels at King’s School,..
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01 December 2000
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125 - 01 December 2000
Diabetic excluded from school trip
Tom White, a schoolboy who had developed diabetes some years earlier, suffered his first severe hypoglycaemic attack on a school skiing trip. Despite his condition being well managed, and successful participation in other school trips, he now faces..
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01 December 2000
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125 - 01 December 2000
Golfer’s family sues Learjet
The families of champion golfer Payne Stewart and three business associates who died in a Learjet crash have filed suit against both the operator and owner in Orange County circuit court, Florida.
Seeking unspecified damages, they claim that..
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01 December 2000
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125 - 01 December 2000
BSE and vCJD
French victims’ families launch suit
again French and British governments and the EU. In a first move of its kind (UK litigation put on hold pending the Phillips Report), allegations by the families of Laurence Duhamel and Arnaud Eboli..
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01 December 2000
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125 - 01 December 2000
BSE report highlights obfuscation and avoidance
No one can have missed the widespread media coverage of the long-awaited report of the BSE inquiry, chaired by Lord Phillips, with remit to establish and review (a) the emergence and identification of BSE and vCJD, (b) the action taken up to March..
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01 December 2000
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125 - 01 December 2000