Family of Insurance Worker Seeking Justice after Asbestos-Related Death

An appeal by the family of an Ipswich insurance company worker who died from an asbestos-related illness may show that other former insurance workers could also be affected by the deadly material.

Nigel Olley died of Mesothelioma in 2017, which it is believed he contracted whilst working in old offices in the City of London more than 30 years ago. He spent all his life working in the insurance industry, the first part of it in London. The City and the surrounding area was the home of the British insurance industry and most companies had their headquarters there.

Mr Olley worked all his life for what began in 1962 as the Motor Union Insurance Company, but became Royal Exchange Insurance, then the Guardian Royal Exchange Group. In 1994 the group moved its headquarters from London to Ipswich, and Mr Olley was one of those who moved with his job.

Finally the group was taken over by AXA who are still based in Ipswich.

Mr Olley was made redundant in 1999 and then in 2014 he was diagnosed with Mesothelioma, an asbestos-related cancer. He died in February 2017 aged 71.

Mr Olley spent the first part of his career working in offices in St James Street and the Strand, in London, often in the basement among the pipework, where the files were kept.It is in the Strand offices that Mr Olley believed he came into contact with asbestos when, throughout a period of major renovation, he recalled going in to work in the morning and having to wipe a thin film of dust off his desk before he could begin his day.

Mr Olley’s family are pursuing a claim against his former employers for being responsible for the conditions which caused his death. Though the claim is against a company taken over many years ago by AXA, there is no suggestion that AXA are in any way implicated in working conditions of this nature.

Ashtons Legal are now appealing to former colleagues of his and other insurance workers who know of those conditions to come forward.

The family’s lawyer is Phoebe Osborne, an asbestos specialist with Ashtons Legal. She says: “‘Mesothelioma is an extremely aggressive and incurable cancer, which is caused by exposure to asbestos dust fibres. It affects more than 2,500 people in this country each year, often occuring 30 years or more after contact, which is why it can be difficult finding witnesses who knew of the conditions at the time”.

She adds: “We are therefore appealing to anyone who worked with Mr Olley in St James Street or the Strand, or knew of the conditions there, to come forward with any information they have”.

If anyone has knowledge of or shared similar working conditions to those described by Mr Olley, his family would be grateful if they could get in touch. Contact Phoebe Osborne on 01223 431159 or email phoebe.osborne@ashtonslegal.co.uk.

Pictured: Jill and Nigel Olley.