£100K Asbestos Payout for Cadbury Worker

Leading chocolate maker Cadbury has paid a former worker £100,000 in compensation after he developed the fatal asbestos related cancer Mesothelioma.

Former publications officer Brian Harrison, worked for the firm at its Bournville factory in Birmingham between 1954 and 1962.

Mr Harrison said ‘there were a large number of pipes at Cadbury’s Bournville premises that were insulated with Asbestos. Whilst the food areas were maintained to the highest standards during the production, this wasn’t necessarily the case during shutdown periods or when areas were closed for repair. When I was interviewing someone I would do so on the shop floor, perhaps a few feet from where they were working.’

Mr Harrison was diagnosed with Mesothelioma in July 2009 after he noticed he struggled for breath while swimming.
Cadbury’s defense had argued that they could not have foreseen that the level of exposure posed a risk of Mr Harrison developing Mesothelioma. Gill Owen from Thompsons Solicitors said that ‘this is a defense often raised in cases where people who did not do manual jobs were exposed to asbestos before it became known in 1965 that even low level and infrequent exposure to asbestos could cause Mesothelioma.’