�A hospice has received a massive cash boost following a family’s successful fight for compensation for the asbestos-related death of a loved one.

The family of Jack Hogg, a former foundry worker at Ford in Dagenham, won �5,000 towards the cost of his care at Saint Francis Hospice in Havering after pursuing a legal case against his former employer.

The company agreed to pay the sum as the hospice had cared for Mr Hogg, who died from asbestos-related cancer.

Exposed

He was 93 when he died in July last year from mesothelioma, a cancer of the lining of the lungs which is caused by asbestos.

He was exposed to the substance while working at the Dagenham car factory between 1951 and 1981.

Following his death, Mr Hogg’s son Ken instructed Thompsons Solicitors who secured full compensation for the family within four months.

Dr Corrina Midgley, from Saint Francis Hospice, said: “We are sorry for the family’s loss, but appreciate their support in securing this donation towards Mr Hogg’s care.

“It will enable us to help other families affected by life-limiting illness as we need to raise �7.7million this year.

“Thanks to legal firms such as Thompsons Solicitors, people in a similar situation can seek advice, at no cost to them.”

Last year the hospice provided care for 39 people suffering from asbestos-related conditions.

Ken, who lives in Spain, said of his father: “He knew he had worked in a filthy environment at the factory and he believed that this was the most likely place he was exposed to asbestos.”

The family’s victory follows the landmark case of Dagenham sisters Tina Starkey and Catherine Drake, who secured the first payout to go directly to a hospice from a company in August 2010.

St Joseph’s Hospice in Hackney received �10,000, plus interest, from Foster Wheeler Ltd which employed the sisters’ father James Wilson in the 1950s. He died from mesothelioma in 2007.