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The latest statistics show that between 1980 and 2000, over 8,000 men and over 1,000 women died from Mesothelioma. If someone in your family has been affected by this grave disease, you may be legally entitled to financial compensation to help cover your losses.
Home improvement workers focus on the maintenance, repair, and renovation of residential homes. Home improvement workers can work in an array of different specialties including carpentry, electrical, plumbing, and cosmetic. There are two main categories of home improvement workers which include general contractors and laborers. When a homeowner needs work done to his or her home, a general contractor can be hired to oversee the work of all trades needed or a single laborer can be employed that reports directly to the owner of the residence.
In many cases, a homeowner will take the responsibility of home improvement upon him or herself. In this scenario, the homeowner will be responsible for all improvements done from receiving all the appropriate permits for the work to actually carrying out the tasks. The term “home improvement” encapsulates any type of work that is done to a residence to improve the condition of the structure. Even painting the walls or refurbishing kitchen cabinets can fall under this term. When a homeowner takes on the task of performing his or her own home improvement, this is normally called “Doing it Yourself” or DIY. Large retail chains in existence today have been formed to support DIY-type people such as Lowe’s Home Improvement and Home Depot. These retail outlets provide homeowners and the alike with everything needed to carry out simple to complex home improvements.
Whether a general contractor or an individual home owner; there are several hazards that must be considered and prepared for before taking on a home improvement project. One of these serious hazards that must be considered is asbestos, the contaminant causing asbestosis, mesothelioma, and other lung diseases. When a home improvement project will be performed on an older residence, the potential of asbestos containing materials on premise is real. Unfortunately many home improvement workers do not take the presence of asbestos into consideration and end up becoming exposed to the contaminant.
Homes built before the hazards of asbestos were well known most likely were built with asbestos containing building materials. The effects of asbestos on human beings were not well known until the late 20th century. Therefore, any house built before the 1970’s could be a candidate to contain asbestos. There are numerous types of building products that were at one time manufactured with asbestos. Asbestos was considered to be a great heat resisting and insulating material and as a result, was used in many products that needed to be resistant to high temperatures or needed to prevent the loss of heat and sound. An example of products that were manufactured with asbestos include the following:
- Steam Pipes
- Boilers
- Furnace Ducts
- Resilient Floor tiles
- Numerous types of insulation
- Furnaces
- Stoves
- Soundproofing materials
- Joint compounds
- Roofing
- Shingles
- Siding
- Fireplace products
The above mentioned products are in no way a complete list but do represent a good example set of products in homes that could contain asbestos.
Our surrounding states of New Jersey, New York, and Pennsylvania has experienced one of the largest home renovation booms in decades and with that comes an increased risk of asbestos exposure to legacy building products. Numerous New Jersey home improvement workers have become exposed to asbestos containing building products without being aware. Once exposed, these asbestos products could pose a risk to the home improvement worker and surrounding family and friends. If you or someone you know is a home improvement worker that has been exposed to asbestos, please seek immediate medical attention and then contact an experienced asbestos and mesothelioma lawyer to understand your legal rights.