THE timing could hardly have been worse for all concerned. Just as Knowsley Council declared it would fight to the bitter end not to compensate Dianne Willmore for the crippling illness she said she contracted as a result of asbestos exposure back in the 1970s, she died as a result of the illness.

The High Court and later the Appeal Court had both ruled in favour of Mrs Willmore, awarding her £240,000 in compensation. Her case was about to be referred to the newly-constituted Supreme Court, with Knowsley announcing its intention to fight her every inch of the way.

Links between asbestos exposure and a number of serious lung diseases have been hypothesised for nearly a century now. There has been a rising tide of compensation claims for illnesses caused by asbestos, for the most part in this country, America and elsewhere settled in favour of the claimants.

But still defendants, be they in the public or private sector, have resisted claims as long and as hard as they can.

A lot of it is to do with the emotionless figures underlying the asbestos claims. Multiply the £240,000 awarded to Mrs Willmore by the number of cases being brought, and the costs look potentially astronomical.

Insurance companies have long taken fright, with money set aside for settling asbestos claims already making inroads into their balance sheets.

And for local authorities who have chosen to self-insure for asbestos claims, the bill ultimately will be met by the taxpayers.

But while accountants, actuaries and lawyers have to think the unthinkable, we must not lose sight of the fact that the asbestos saga of the last half-century and more is, above all, a human tragedy.