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Munich Re pulls out of Israel
Munich Re is to pull out of reinsuring Israeli liability insurers following the insurance supervisor’s new demand for letters of credit. This is now required of all reinsurers to protect Israeli insurers against their possible insolvency...
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01 December 2001
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137 - 01 December 2001
FIFA to sue Axa
FIFA, organiser of the World Cup soccer competition, has obtained cancellation coverage by National Indemnity, a 100%-owned subsidiary of Berkshire Hathaway. But it plans to sue its former insurer Axa for short-notice cancellation of blanket cover..
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01 December 2001
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137 - 01 December 2001
Lloyd’s pays 60%
After a series of about-turns by the US National Association of Insurance Commissioners, Lloyd’s has paid £2bn, the normal 60% deposit, in relation to expected World Trade Center claims. The remaining 40% is likely to be required at the..
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01 December 2001
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137 - 01 December 2001
Medmal transfer agreed
Negotiations for the assumption of the management of medical malpractice syndicate 1204 (formerly with Crowe) by Lloyd’s managing agent R J Kiln & Co have been completed. The whole 1204 team, led by underwriter Janet Helson, has moved to..
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01 December 2001
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137 - 01 December 2001
Aggregation for misselling claims
Upholding a High Court ruling on a preliminary issue common to two actions, the Court of Appeal has confirmed that claims for coverage against professional indemnity insurers may be aggregated.
This was in Lloyd’s TSB General Insurance..
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01 December 2001
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137 - 01 December 2001
More misselling fines
The Personal Investment Authority (PIA), now part of the Financial Services Authority (FSA), has fined Prudential £650,000 for failings in its misselling review, specifically for delays in making payments of redress and poor record..
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01 December 2001
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137 - 01 December 2001
Airbus crash in New York
The crash of American Airlines Airbus 300 flight 587 on takeoff from New York’s John F Kennedy international airport to the Dominican Republic on 12 November has raised a number of questions for investigators.
The death toll of passengers and..
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01 December 2001
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137 - 01 December 2001
Mould award stands
In a Texas court, judge John Dietz has ruled that Farmers Insurance Group must pay the full US$32mn damages previously awarded to Melinda Ballard in a mould damage lawsuit.
Farmers is to launch a further appeal.
Because of the extent of mould loss,..
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01 December 2001
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137 - 01 December 2001
Punitive verdict against insurer reinstated
The Utah Supreme Court has reinstated a US$145mn punitive verdict against State Farm Insurance in respect of its handling of an insured’s accident in 1981.
Although the insured was held responsible for the crash, he charged his insurer with..
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01 December 2001
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137 - 01 December 2001
US insurers reclassify
Thomas Cherry of leading US law firm Wilson, Elser, Moskowitz, Edelman & Dicker has warned London market reinsurers that primary insurers in the US are trying to reclassify asbestos-related claims for reinsurance recovery. He was speaking at a..
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01 December 2001
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137 - 01 December 2001
Aggregation of misselling claims
A ruling on a preliminary issue has confirmed that claims for coverage against professional indemnity insurers may be aggregated. This will bring the claims at issue above the £1mn per loss deductible, triggering insurer response. Leave to..
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01 December 2001
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137 - 01 December 2001
Lack of advice on US motor insurance
A child on a fly-drive holiday in the US with his parents suffered injury leading to brain damage and partial blindness in a car crash. The culpable driver had only the state’s legal minimum third-party cover of US$300,000.
His parents, having..
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01 December 2001
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137 - 01 December 2001
Zurich challenges Westfield policy
Zurich American Insurance, a unit of Zurich Financial Services Group, has filed suit challenging insurance cover held by affiliates of Westfield Holdings, coleasees with Silverstein of the World Trade Center twin towers. Although Zurich is one of..
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01 December 2001
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137 - 01 December 2001
Dispute between Swiss Re and Silverstein intensifies
As insurers raise their World Trade Center estimates, reserves, and reported losses the first serious litigation crystallises.
Appearing at first a simple question of whether the attack on the two towers constituted one or two events, the battle..
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01 December 2001
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137 - 01 December 2001
New EU plans for consumer protection
As the European Commission’s current three-year consumer policy plan comes to an end, a discussion document indicates future policy and targets for a more highly harmonised level of consumer protection across the EU. This is through:
ensuring..
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01 December 2001
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137 - 01 December 2001
Long-term illness insurance
..
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01 December 2001
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137 - 01 December 2001
Mutual law
Beachcroft Wansbroughs has come up with a new solution to the insurance industry’s need to control legal costs in high-volume fast-track claims.
This is through Mutual Law, a three-tier team structure replacing the traditional..
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01 December 2001
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137 - 01 December 2001
Group action litigation
..
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01 December 2001
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137 - 01 December 2001
Call for expert witness merger
The Master of the Rolls, Lord Phillips, has called for a merger of the two main expert witness organisations, the Academy of Experts & Expert Witnesses and the Expert Witness Institute. This is because of a current climate bordering on..
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01 December 2001
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137 - 01 December 2001
UK patents law moves transatlantic
Amendments to the Patents Act 1977, currently progressing through parliament, will steeply increase the level of damages available against companies that blatantly infringe patent rights. This will align the UK approach to intellectual property..
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01 December 2001
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137 - 01 December 2001
Data inspection
Increased rights of inspection came into force in October with the full implementation of the Data Protection Act.
Staff may now inspect comments about them in emails (even where deleted) and paper-based files (including confidential notes by their..
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01 December 2001
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137 - 01 December 2001
Employment tribunal taskforce
An Employment Tribunal System Taskforce has been set up to consider aspects of the system: Employment Tribunals, the Employment Tribunal Service and the Advisory Conciliation and Arbitration Service.
The taskforce aims to implement a more efficient..
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01 December 2001
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137 - 01 December 2001
Irish liability insurance
Irish business organisations are expressing deep concern at the probability of steep rises in liability and commercial property insurance, claiming they are already three to six times as high as in other EU countries.
But the Irish Insurance..
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01 December 2001
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137 - 01 December 2001
Claims service the key
..
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01 December 2001
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137 - 01 December 2001
A M Best warns of underreserving
..
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01 December 2001
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137 - 01 December 2001
First steps to recovery for Claims Direct
Moving forward under new ownership, Claims Direct has removed one of the main threatened lawsuits by settlement of dispute with a group of franchise managers.
On the table is another exit package for claims managers that includes the chance to be..
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01 December 2001
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137 - 01 December 2001
Solicitors’ insurance requirements
The Law Society has indicated that minimum insurance requirements for solicitors are to be raised from £1mn to between £2mn and £10mn, with £3mn the most likely level.
Separately, a recent survey found seven out of 10 solicitors..
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01 December 2001
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137 - 01 December 2001
Lack of seatbelt cuts award
..
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01 December 2001
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137 - 01 December 2001
Siren use guidelines ‘unhelpful’
Granting leave for a negligence claim to proceed against Devon Fire & Rescue Service, Torquay County Court recorder Jonathan Brock QC said existing guidelines on the use of emergency sirens were ‘ambiguous and unhelpful’ and called..
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01 December 2001
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137 - 01 December 2001
Less deaths, higher claims
Research from financial consultants Watson Wyatt shows UK motor premiums as some of the highest in Europe despite comparatively low levels of road accident fatalities.
While the number of accidents, at 5,600 per million inhabitants, is one of the..
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01 December 2001
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137 - 01 December 2001
Motor survey 2000
Our sister publication London Market Newsletter
carried the annual review of the UK motor market in issue 699. Statistics include comparisons between leading market players and claims experience from previous years.
Contact Philip Morton at Informa..
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01 December 2001
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137 - 01 December 2001
Handheld phone risk
The Institute of Advanced Motorists (IAM) has called on the government to require the police to collect data on accidents where mobile phone use is a factor.
An IAM survey suggests the use of phones while driving is now the most dangerous driving..
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01 December 2001
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137 - 01 December 2001
Directors’ ignorance on liabilities
A survey coproduced by law firm Taylor Joynson Garrett and Legal Director
magazine suggests many company directors are ‘fundamentally ignorant’ about their liabilities in corporate insolvency, and may be vulnerable to disqualification..
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01 December 2001
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137 - 01 December 2001
Equitable turnaround
Parliamentary ombudsman Michael Buckley has reversed his earlier decision to wait for the Penrose report and will now investigate the role of the Financial Services Authority (FSA) in its downfall.
This investigation will cover the period from 1..
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01 December 2001
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137 - 01 December 2001
Smoking in own time
Sales executive Mark Hodges was sacked on day two of his job with Boxes & Packaging of Swindon when it was discovered he smoked when not at work.
He had been warned of the firm’s strict no-smoking policy but had assumed this applied to..
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01 December 2001
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137 - 01 December 2001
Speeding of miners’ payments
..
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01 December 2001
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137 - 01 December 2001
Pension rights in transfer
A preliminary note from CMS Cameron McKenna alerts employers to caution regarding pension rights during a TUPE transfer. This is in Hagen v ICI Chemicals
. Full judgment is not yet available.
ICI employees, concerned about retaining their pension..
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01 December 2001
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137 - 01 December 2001
Employment bill
The newly introduced Employment Bill includes provisions requiring employees to work through any grievance with their employer before taking it to tribunal. Failure of either party will be punished by tribunal powers to vary awards by up to 50%.
At..
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01 December 2001
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137 - 01 December 2001
Union ‘inspection notices’
The Trades Union Congress (TUC) has prepared ‘union inspection notices’, which may be served by unions safety representatives on employers as a last resort before calling in health and safety inspectors. It is intended they be issued for..
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01 December 2001
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137 - 01 December 2001
HSE guide: work-related stress
Aiming to assist small firms in prevention of work-related stress and absenteeism, this follows the publication earlier this year of guidance for firms employing more than 50 people.
Available, single copies free • tel 01787 881165 •..
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01 December 2001
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137 - 01 December 2001
Health and safety statistics 2000/1
The annual publication of statistics by the Health & Safety Commission shows a sharp increase in workplace fatalities for 2000/1, at 295 compared with 220 the previous year. Over a third of these occurred in the construction industry and 17% in..
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01 December 2001
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137 - 01 December 2001
Railtrack and EWSR fined for boy’s death
Nottingham Crown Court imposed a fine of £50,000 on Railtrack for the death of 12-year-old Shaun McGrath, hit by a goods train when playing on sidings in 1999.
A £70,000 fine was imposed on codefendant English, Welsh & Scottish..
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01 December 2001
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137 - 01 December 2001
Hatfield and Paddington decisions questioned
Despite admissions of liability, it is thought Railtrack will escape prosecution for the Hatfield and Paddington crashes unless the Health & Safety Executive’s prosecution case is ready before the new Railtrack is set up in spring..
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01 December 2001
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137 - 01 December 2001
Tram rail standards
In the first safety-based claim against a tram company for over a century, Sheffield Supertram (now South Yorkshire Light Rail) was held responsible for a car driver’s skidding accident, resulting in his severe brain damage. The company had..
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01 December 2001
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137 - 01 December 2001
Gotthard tunnel fire
The latest catastrophic tunnel crash occurred on 24 October in the world’s second-longest tunnel, at 17km, used by 19,000 vehicles a day. Two trucks collided, leading to ferocious and long-lasting fires. At least 14 people died, with..
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01 December 2001
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137 - 01 December 2001
Corus explosion
A major explosion early in November at the Port Talbot works of Anglo-Dutch steel group Corus left three dead and a number of workers severely injured.
The plant was rated ‘average’ in a recent Corus health and safety audit. Despite..
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01 December 2001
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137 - 01 December 2001
Too many alarms
Criticism of too many, and therefore ineffective, alarms has been voiced by leaders in the field and reported in New Scientist
of 6 October 2001.
Focusing mainly on chemical and oil plants, they note that the same tone is often used for a whole..
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01 December 2001
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137 - 01 December 2001
Where to store it?
UK environment minister Michael Meacher has launched consultation on the options for storage of nuclear waste.
The preferred option has moved back underground, following 11 September, despite arguments against underground storage by..
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01 December 2001
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137 - 01 December 2001
Pilot tiredness
The US National Transportation Safety Board has concluded that the American Airlines flight 1420 overrun crash in 1999, with 11 deaths and 105 injuries, was due to pilots’ decisions.
The actions of pilot and copilot in deciding to land in a..
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01 December 2001
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137 - 01 December 2001
Noise reduction dropped
Proposed EU legislation that would have banned older, noisier aircraft from European airports from April 2002 has been dropped after US pressure and threat of economic sanctions.
US interests claimed the plan would discriminate against US engine..
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01 December 2001
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137 - 01 December 2001
Ukraine promises compensation
Accepting that a TU-154 Russian jet, downed in the Black Sea with the deaths of all 78 on board, was accidentally shot down by a missile, the Ukrainian president has promised compensation to the families of Israelis, many of whom were recent..
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01 December 2001
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137 - 01 December 2001
Alaska crash information denied
Boeing has asked a federal judge to uphold its limitation of information to relatives of the 88 passengers and crew who died in the Alaska Airlines flight 261 crash in January 2000.
Families seek information to assist their consideration of..
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01 December 2001
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137 - 01 December 2001
SilkAir claim fails
The families of six of the passengers who died in the unexplained crash of flight MI 185 of Singapore Airlines in 1997, with 104 deaths, have lost their action based on negligence and ‘wilful misconduct’, suggesting pilot suicide.
Judge..
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01 December 2001
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137 - 01 December 2001
Exxon Valdez’s punitive damages
Exxon Valdez’s string of appeals against an Anchorage jury’s award of US$5.3bn punitive damages in respect of the 1989 oil spill has paid off.
The US Court of Appeals (Ninth Circuit) has vacated the award as excessive, returning it to..
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01 December 2001
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137 - 01 December 2001
Erika managers charged
TotalFinaElf crisis response unit coordinator Eric Calonne has been charged by the French examining magistrate with marine pollution and complicity in endangering human life. Four other executives imminently expecting to be charged include..
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01 December 2001
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137 - 01 December 2001
Help on hazardous waste regulations
Universal Salvage has launched a helpline for insurers to assist in matters relating to the new hazardous waste regulations that come into force on 1 January 2002, followed in April by the End of Life Vehicle (ELV) Directive.
Universal Salvage will..
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01 December 2001
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137 - 01 December 2001
FSA sets new levels for dioxins
Based on international research findings, the Food Standards Agency has reduced recommended maximum levels of dioxins and polychlorinated buphenyls (PCBs) five times lower than previously considered safe.
It also notes that one-third of the UK..
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01 December 2001
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137 - 01 December 2001
Toxic mould protection act
In what could become a more widespread approach to the (mainly US at present) problems of mould in the home and other buildings, California has passed the Toxic Mold Protection Act.
This makes the state’s Department of Health Services..
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01 December 2001
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137 - 01 December 2001
Former landowners not liable for pollution
The Ninth US Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco has ruled that former landowners of contaminated property, who had not contributed to its pollution, are not liable for cleanup costs.
The land, formerly used for petroleum production, was later..
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01 December 2001
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137 - 01 December 2001
Exclusion of ‘nontraditional’ pollution
Differing from the trend, Nebraska Supreme Court has upheld and reaffirmed an absolute pollution exclusion in a general liability policy.
Becker Warehouse argued that contamination of food by vapours from a concrete sealant in use in another part of..
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01 December 2001
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137 - 01 December 2001
WTC a virtual nonevent for life industry
Rating agency Moody’s reports that the events of 11 September were ‘a virtual nonevent’ for the US life insurance industry. Gross claims are unlikely to exceed US$3bn, with net exposures below US$2bn. The latest estimate for the..
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01 December 2001
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137 - 01 December 2001
Low-pay Mexicans file against New York state
A number of Mexicans, mostly low-paid immigrants to the US who have suffered injury at work, have filed suit in Mexico against New York state over unresolved workers compensation claims. In filing in Mexico they are using a provision in the North..
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01 December 2001
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137 - 01 December 2001
Challenge to denial of work that could harm
The San Francisco appeal court has given assent for a man to pursue a claim against Chevron, challenging the right of an employer to refuse work that could exacerbate an existing medical condition.
In Chevron USA v Mario Echazabal
it was argued..
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01 December 2001
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137 - 01 December 2001
Estoppel attack on pollution exclusion
The Pennsylvania Supreme Court has ruled against several insurers (lead defendant Liberty Mutual) on the meaning of a ‘sudden and accidental’ pollution exclusion, overturning a lower court ruling that the words also barred cover for..
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01 December 2001
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137 - 01 December 2001
Palace worker dies
An inquest has been told that former Buckingham Palace maintenance worker John Costello died from mesothelioma after exposure to asbestos while engaged in boiler work over a period of 22 years. The verdict was death from industrial disease...
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01 December 2001
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137 - 01 December 2001
Exposure identification cases at appeal
Three cases (Fox v Spousal and others,
see LRI
August 2001), in which the High Court ruled out victims’ claims where they were unable to show which of their employers was responsible for the fibres causing their cancer, have reached the..
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01 December 2001
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137 - 01 December 2001
French seamen dissatisfied
Despite recent legislation in France to assist employees exposed to asbestos, French seamen are engaging in a series of strikes. They seek retirement at age 50 for all seamen who have been exposed to asbestos, rather than only those exposed in..
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01 December 2001
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137 - 01 December 2001
Cheques bounce T&N into insolvency
Solicitors acting for former employees of Turner & Newall (subsequently purchased by Federal-Mogul, which recently filed for chapter 11 bankruptcy) report that compensation cheques sent out by Federal-Mogul have bounced.
An example of the..
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01 December 2001
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137 - 01 December 2001
Fallout from World Trade Center asbestos risk?
An article attacking the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) by Kimberley Strassel in the Journal
(see opinionjournal.com) may well contribute to more robust defence arguments in nonsettled asbestos claims.
Following reports of asbestos..
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01 December 2001
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137 - 01 December 2001
FM withdrawal delays Cooper takeover
The chapter 11 bankruptcy of Federal-Mogul has led it to inform Cooper Industries that it may not be able to honour indemnity for claims relating to the Abex brand of automotive brake products. Cooper sold its automotive business to Federal-Mogul in..
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01 December 2001
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137 - 01 December 2001
Halliburton damages and overview
Halliburton, the world’s biggest oilfield services firm, is due to pay US$21.25mn as part of a Lexington, Mississippi jury award of US$150mn. This is among six plaintiffs in respect of asbestos injury when working in boiler rooms.
Two other..
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01 December 2001
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137 - 01 December 2001
Asbestos: past and future impact
A comprehensive new study into the insurance industry’s current and future exposure to asbestos claims, by Adrian Leonard, was published at the end of November.
Asbestos: past and future impact
examines recent detailed studies along with its..
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01 December 2001
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137 - 01 December 2001
Tobacco update
The Scottish Court of Session,
Edinburgh, is to hear a ‘failure to warn’ case.
Widow Margaret McTear has, after eight years of attempts, won permission to sue Imperial Tobacco for £500,000 for failure to warn of the dangers of..
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01 December 2001
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137 - 01 December 2001
BSE, CJD and F&M
The UK Rural Business Campaign action group,
with several thousand participants and growing, has instructed Class Law to prepare litigation.
Class Law partner Stephen Alexander said: ‘Possible areas for claims against the government are that..
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01 December 2001
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137 - 01 December 2001
Electric toothbrush risk
A report by Phillip Colquitt of Queensland, Australia, to appear in journal The Science of the Total Environment
, suggests electric toothbrushes could be leaving traces of heavy metals in the mouth. Experiments have shown they can leave residues of..
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01 December 2001
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137 - 01 December 2001
Other motor recalls
Ford has recalled more than 1mn vehicles because a faulty windscreen wiper switch could cause fire. Forty of these have been reported but in no case did flames enter the passenger compartment or cause injuries.
And responding to another six-year-old..
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01 December 2001
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137 - 01 December 2001
Tyre claim developments
Ford’s new chief executive, William Ford, who replaced Jac Nasser, started moves towards the resolution of the battle with Bridgestone. He said he wanted a ‘constructive’ relationship, which could avoid bloody and costly court..
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01 December 2001
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137 - 01 December 2001
Vodaphone named in mobile phone suit
The trickle of mobile phone-related claims already filed, including some seeking class action status, is moving towards a stream.
A dozen new health-related suits are being filed in mid-November in Washington, DC by law firm Morganroth &..
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01 December 2001
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137 - 01 December 2001
No ‘explosion’ in US medmal
A study of medical malpractice claims over the past 10 years, conducted on behalf of the Center for Justice & Democracy, concludes: ‘There is no explosion in claim severity.’ While claim costs have risen slightly in the past 10..
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01 December 2001
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137 - 01 December 2001
NHS slow claims response
The House of Commons public accounts committee, looking at the sevenfold rise in National Health Service (NHS) liability bills since 1995–6, heard denials that it was ‘dragging its heels’ in compensating patients for..
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01 December 2001
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137 - 01 December 2001
Medicines control agency
The annual report of the Medicines Control Agency (MCA) claims all targets achieved including an average of 36 days consideration of new drug applications, and all casework within EU timeframes.
A start has been made on a programme to change the..
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01 December 2001
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137 - 01 December 2001
Anthrax problems
The son of US postal worker Thomas Moore, who died of anthrax inhalation, has filed suit against health maintenance organisation Kaiser Permanente for clinical negligence in misdiagnosis of his father’s condition.
Although the ill man told his..
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01 December 2001
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137 - 01 December 2001
AHP increases fen-phen reserves
American Home Products (AHP) has increased litigation reserves for fen-phen diet drugs, adding US$950mn to existing reserves of US$12.25bn.
Of the 6mn people who took the drug, about 300,000 have joined a class action settlement sharing US$5bn. Some..
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01 December 2001
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137 - 01 December 2001
Meningitis C vaccine
A study, led by Prof Adam Finn of the Institute of Child Health at Bristol University and looking at more than 3,000 vaccinations of babies against meningitis C, has found no side-effects. Of only four serious events reported, all were of short..
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01 December 2001
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137 - 01 December 2001
Ritalin questioned
Ritalin, a drug commonly prescribed to hyperactive children, may cause long-term changes to the chemistry of the brain similar to those from cocaine use. It may also become addictive.
This is according to rat-based research led by Dr Joan Baizer at..
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01 December 2001
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137 - 01 December 2001
Dexatrim suits
Chattem has been named as a defendant in more than 18 recently filed lawsuits, alleging that the plaintiffs were injured as a result of ingesting products containing phenylpropanolamine, which until November 2000 was the active ingredient in some of..
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01 December 2001
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137 - 01 December 2001
Baycol dents Bayer’s profits
German pharmaceutical giant Bayer, facing fatality claims linked to the use of now-withdrawn cholesterol-lowering drug Baycol (see LRI
October 2001) has suffered financial dent even before court hearings.
Some €1.4bn has been taken out of its..
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01 December 2001
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137 - 01 December 2001
Baxter dialysis filters
A number of internal and external investigations into 56 deaths of kidney dialysis patients have led US healthcare company Baxter International to admit that manufacturing problems, allowing processing fluid to remain in blood filters at their..
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01 December 2001
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137 - 01 December 2001
Sulzer Medica and Sulzer join battle
As Sulzer Medica’s proposed US$783mn class action settlement lies in the balance, battle has been joined between Swiss industrial engineering group Sulzer AG and its former medical devices unit Sulzer Medica on participation in compensation..
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01 December 2001
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137 - 01 December 2001
Council liable for tree root damage
The owner of a property was entitled to recover for damage caused by the incursion of tree roots from an adjoining highway. In the case at issue, this was despite the damage having been caused before the owner’s purchase of the property and..
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01 December 2001
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137 - 01 December 2001
Detention of asylum seekers lawful
Overturning a High Court ruling and speculation of government liability for millions of pounds in compensation (see LRI
October 2001), detention of asylum seekers for up to 10 days to facilitate speedy determination of their claims is..
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01 December 2001
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137 - 01 December 2001
Night watchman entitled to pay for sleep time
A night watchman was entitled to the national minimum wage for all the time he was required to be on premises, not only for those hours when he was required to perform certain tasks.
Wright v Scottbridge Construction Ltd • Employment Appeal..
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01 December 2001
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137 - 01 December 2001
Dishonesty no bar to holiday entitlement
Despite an industry-wide collective agreement specifically providing that a worker dismissed for dishonesty was not entitled to accrued holiday pay, a club steward so dismissed was entitled to such pay under the Working Time Regulations. An..
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01 December 2001
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137 - 01 December 2001
Reliance on medical evidence
An employer was entitled to rely on medical evidence in a decision on disability and suitability for employment – in this case as a driver. A tribunal had erred in finding against the employer when it was shown the medical evidence on which he..
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01 December 2001
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137 - 01 December 2001
Examination of joint expert
Nonmedical evidence in a medical negligence claim should normally be provided by the report of a joint expert. Except in special circumstances there should be no need for that evidence to be amplified or tested by cross-examination.
Peet v Mid-Kent..
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01 December 2001
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137 - 01 December 2001
Expert witnesses under Civil Procedure Rules
Clarification of greater powers of courts on the instruction of expert witnesses. A claimant’s request to meet a jointly instructed medical expert in absence of the defendant was refused in that it breached the court’s overriding..
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01 December 2001
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137 - 01 December 2001
Recoverability of after-the-event premiums
The cost to a claimant of insuring against failure to recover the costs of his litigation could be recovered from the defendant, under section 29 of the Access to Justice Act 1999, where the defendant became liable to pay other costs.
Reported in..
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01 December 2001
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137 - 01 December 2001
Lifting of automatic stay
In an apparently badly mismanaged personal injury claim, running from 1987, allowing a lower court lifting, with certain limitations, of an automatic stay to stand, Mr Justice Owen provided useful guidance on the proper approach to such applications..
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01 December 2001
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137 - 01 December 2001
Contribution to damages
The claimant, having discovered that a property purchased was worth far less than paid, sought damages in breach of warranty from the vendor. The vendor in turn sought contribution under the Civil Procedure Rules 1998 part 20 from the..
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01 December 2001
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137 - 01 December 2001
Negligent advice by broker
A broker negligently advised the client that reinsurance was available at a certain price, knowing that acceptance depended on this. The cover was not available at the expected price and more costly cover was avoided because of errors made by the..
Online Published Date:
01 December 2001
Appeared in issue:
137 - 01 December 2001
Better rehab
Insurers and reinsurers have welcomed the launch of the Case Management Society of the UK (CMS UK), designed to promote rehabilitation services.
Two years ago the Second UK Bodily Injury Survey produced by the International Underwriting Association..
Online Published Date:
01 December 2001
Appeared in issue:
137 - 01 December 2001
Arms-to-Iraq compensation sought
Following recent payments to two directors of Matrix Churchill, wrongfully prosecuted in the notorious arms-to-Iraq affair, former director of Ordnance Technologies John Grecian also seeks compensation.
Unlike four of his codefendants who were..
Online Published Date:
01 December 2001
Appeared in issue:
137 - 01 December 2001
Only two wrongful death suits filed for WTC
At the time of writing only two wrongful death suits have been filed on behalf of people who died on 11 September. Both name Osama bin Laden as defendant. The reason for few filings to date, apart from difficulty in citing a defendant with any..
Online Published Date:
01 December 2001
Appeared in issue:
137 - 01 December 2001
Independent’s actuaries and auditors targeted
Class Law expects to file action early next year, targeting the former actuaries of Independent Insurance, Watson Wyatt, and auditor KPMG rather than its ex-directors.
The Joint Disciplinary Scheme of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in..
Online Published Date:
01 December 2001
Appeared in issue:
137 - 01 December 2001
DVT writs issued
Writs have been issued against Virgin Airlines and British Airways (BA) by Watford-based Collins firm of solicitors acting for more than 150 alleged victims of deep vein thrombosis (DVT) associated with air journeys. Test cases are likely to lead to..
Online Published Date:
01 December 2001
Appeared in issue:
137 - 01 December 2001