InView Spring/Summer 2016

18 InView | An independent eye on Insurance
CABIN FEVER –
TOXICITY IN THE AIR
While employers – and insurers – are familiar with stress-related claims,
other global risks are emerging. Jim Byard provides his thoughts.
Aero toxicity syndrome involves contaminated air being
drawn into airline cabins from their jet engines.
British Airways has been subject to a class action by pilots
and cabin crew who claim to have suffered a range of serious
health problems as a result of breathing in fumes mixed with
engine oil and other toxic chemicals, known as fume events.
The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) says incidents of fumes
in plane cabins are rare – only 0.05 per cent of all flights
by UK-based aircraft – and insists there is no evidence of
long-term health effects.
The CAA doesn’t recognise aero toxicity syndrome because
there is no defined diagnostic criteria and the symptoms are
similar to a broad range of other illnesses or syndromes.
There is also an unanswered question about why passengers
who fly frequently have not reported symptoms, although
this may be partly explained by experts who say different
individuals have different levels of susceptibility to
toxic fumes.
Central to the debate is an inquest into the death of pilot
Richard Westgate. He died in December 2012, aged 43, after
complaining of long-term health problems. The case has been
adjourned to enable the coroner to examine expert opinion.
If the coroner rules that Mr Westgate’s death was down to
aero toxicity syndrome, and it can be established that fume
events have led to serious ill-health among other pilots and
cabin crew, there will be serious implications for insurers in
the aviation sector.
Although the jury is still out on conflicting epidemiology
studies, one thing that most people seem to agree on is that
the research into aero toxicity syndrome is very limited and
much more needs to be done.
Jim Byard, Partner
0113 213 4014
jim.byard@weightmans.com
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