Compensation payments to South African asbestos miners are nearing completion, legal firm Leigh, Day & Co said in a statement on Thursday.
The London solicitors firm represented the claimants in their legal bid for compensation by Cape, the owners of a former asbestos mine.
On May 7, a ninth round of compensation payments was made to miners from the Cape settlement.
Less than seven percent of the claimants are still to receive payments and to date payments have been made to 94,7% of the 7 500 claimants to a total value of over R121-million, the statement said.
Absa Bank’s trust company, Absa trust has dealt with the distribution of the payments, either by depositing money into existing bank accounts of the claimants, or into new accounts, opened free of charge.
Leigh, Day & Co said that there had been a number of instances that were more complex to resolve, in particular those where payments have been made to the next of kin of a deceased miner.
”In those cases, it has been necessary first to identify the relative who is legally entitled to receive the money on behalf of the other relatives,” the statement said.
There had also been cases where claimants’ identity was in issue or claimants could no longer be traced.
The long-running battle for compensation ended in June 2003 when the English High Court approved a settlement that had been reached on 13 March 2003. The claimants received a total of approximately R128-million from Cape PLC and Gencor. – Sapa