All cases are different, and different Judges give different sums for similar disabilities.

If an offer is made to you, ask your solicitor to break it down into headings listed below, so you can be sure everything has been taken into account.

• compensation for pain and suffering

If you have asbestos-related disease, you are entitled to compensation for the pain and inconvenience and disability. Compensation for pain and suffering runs from £3,500 for pleural plaques with no symptoms to £60,000+ for mesothelioma or severe asbestosis.

If you read of awards of much more than this, it is because of the other items which you can claim for.

• Interest on compensation given for pain and suffering

• loss of wages and expenses

Expenses include travelling expenses to hospital or prescription charges. You get loss of wages and these sorts of expenses up to the date of the trial or the settlement of your case by agreement. This item has a special name. It is called special damage. It can be worked out precisely. It will be worthwhile writing down a list of all your expenses and keeping it updated every 3 months, otherwise you may not be compensated for some things. Show your solicitor the list and put a date on it.

• interest on loss of wages and expenses

This is paid from the date of the onset of lost wages until the case is settled or won in court. But it is only paid if a court action is started. Another good reason to use a solicitor who will get the court case going quickly.

• future loss of wages or other income

This is very important and can increase the compensation a lot. If you have to change your work because of asbestos disease and your wages drop as a result of it, or if you cannot work at all because of your illness, you will be awarded future loss of earnings. For example, a man aged 40 may get this loss, worked out on a yearly basis, and multiplied by 17. So if the loss, clear of tax, is £200 a week, and is permanent, you should get £200 x 52 x 17 years, which is £176,800.

• loss of earning capacity

Someone with asbestos-related disease, even if they have no symptoms, is not such an attractive prospect to a future employer.

Someone with pleural plaques caused by asbestos may have to admit to this on a job application form.

If you are breathless and this prevents you from climbing or lifting, or your chest is so bad that you cannot work outside in cold weather, then even if you do not have to do such things now, you will be entitled to compensation if there is a risk in the future that you might have to do such things. You will have suffered a handicap for such work and, depending how big the handicap is, you will receive compensation for this, but only if your solicitor claims for it. You could get between £5,000 and £50,000 for this or possibly more, depending on your personal circumstances and how the asbestos illness affects you and your work.

• care

If you need someone's help, whether it is for a few days, weeks, or forever, because of your illness, you can claim for this even if the help is given free by a relative. If you cannot do the shopping, gardening, make beds, or hoover up, then if someone else does this for you, even for one or two hours a week, you can claim for this work at the rate of about £6 an hour. You can claim for help given to you in the past, and help you will need in the future. If you pay for professional nursing care, you will be awarded the cost of this.

• medical expenses

You are entitled to the cost of private medical treatment, and travelling expenses caused by medical treatment you need.

• special equipment to help you cope with the illness

You might need a stair lift, a special type of shower, or a special type of bed. You may need ground floor accommodation. You may need accommodation nearer to people who are going to look after you. A specialist solicitor will know how much these things cost.

• loss of a pension

Many people will lose money in occupational pension schemes if they have to give up work early because of asbestos-related disease. Your solicitor should be able to calculate this and claim it in the court action.