THE Construction Workers Compensation Scheme (TCWCS) is urging anyone in the North-East who worked in construction anytime up to 2009 to contact them to find out whether they are entitled to financial compensation under the recently launched scheme.

The scheme, which opened on July 4, will pay compensation of between £4,000 and £100,000 to any construction worker whose name was held on The Consulting Association (TCA) records – all you need to prove is your identity as the person named.

The scheme will also pay compensation to the estate of a construction worker whose name was on the records but who has since died – again, all that is needed is a match between the name and the details held.

The Consulting Association held the names of around 3,000 workers and some of these names were checked by construction companies before employment.

According to figures published by the GMB union, there may be more than 130 individuals in the North-East region who are eligible for compensation, with 43 of those in Teesside and 11 in Durham.

The scheme has been designed to make it easy for anyone who can prove their identity as a person named on TCA records to claim and provides two routes for accessing compensation – fast track and full review.

Offering fixed levels of compensation, the fast track is designed for those looking for a fast payment against fixed criteria, or for those where only very basic information was held. Under fast track, successful applicants will receive payments starting at £4,000 when only very basic information, such as a name and region, is held rising to a maximum of £20,000 when there is evidence that the records had been accessed. Fast track applicants simply need to be able to demonstrate they are the person listed on the records; they do not need to prove loss of earnings as awards are based solely on the information held. Once a fast track applicant knows they are eligible and decides to join the scheme, they will receive their compensation payment within two weeks.

The full review process is an alternative process for those people where there is evidence that their records were accessed and who would prefer a more detailed investigation of their particular circumstances.

The full review provides the opportunity to submit evidence of the impact of TCA records on the individual’s employment. These claims will be assessed by an independent adjudicator who is able to set compensation up to a maximum of £100,000 for any individual claimant. Under full review, the assessment of the claim and payment of compensation will be completed within three to six months.

Anyone who is eligible to join the scheme is entitled to ‘no obligation’ legal advice, paid for by TCWCS, to help them decide whether the scheme is right for them.

A spokesperson for TCWCS said: “We are encouraging anyone in the North-East who worked in construction in the years leading up to and including 2009 to contact the TCWCS freephone helpline or look at the website for further information - we are really keen to find as many people as possible who are eligible for compensation, so do get in touch. Or if you know someone else who worked in construction, please encourage them to pick up the phone to us or log onto www.tcwcs.co.uk to find out whether they are eligible for compensation. Enquiries to the scheme are handled quickly and, if you are eligible, joining the scheme is completely free of charge. TCWCS is even covering the cost of independent legal advice for every eligible applicant to help them decide whether the scheme is right for them.”