Product liability compensation news
05/08/2008

UK Vioxx users need law change for claims to commence

For the 300 UK people who suffered heart attacks or strokes while using the osteo-arthritis drug Vioxx, the fight for product liability compensation seems no closer. This is despite the fact that Merck, the manufacturer of the drug, has paid out a total of around £2 billion in product liability compensation to those affected by similar problems in the US.

One of the British people affected, a 73-year-old grandfather-of-eight, explains how a heart attack brought on by the drug has impacted him. "It brought my life to an abrupt halt and was a frightening experience," he said.

Adding, "It terminated my means of gaining employment and I was financially stuck. I'm retired now, but I had intended to carry on working part-time. The heart attack put a complete stop to that.

"I can't drive long distances. It knocks your confidence as much as anything else."

One UK personal injury solicitor firm have tried to using the US court system to claim product liability compensation for UK claimants but have been told that the USA will not accept litigants from outside the US.

Southend West MP David Amess, member of a cross-party action group on the issue, believes something must be done. "I don't think there's any dispute about the effects of the drug," he commented.

"It can't be right people can be compensated in America, but not in the UK."