Tiger Brands has reached an agreement with Richard Spoor Inc and LHL Attorneys to advance the first payments to listeriosis victims with urgent medical needs but who are still awaiting the outcome of the class action lawsuit.
Last year the company announced it would cover the medical bills of those affected by the outbreak, linked to contamination at Tiger Brands’ Enterprise Foods factory in Polokwane in 2017, even though liability has not yet been determined.
News24 reports that on Monday, a joint statement was issued saying they were in discussions to extend the relief to other qualifying claimants in a similar position.
No details of the payments will be made public.
The 2017 outbreak led to more than 200 deaths, with Richard Spoor Inc previously estimating the damages in the case to range between R1.5bn and R2.5bn.
Amy Tuchten, a candidate attorney at Richard Spoor Inc, said they were unable to comment on the percentage of claimants who will receive the advance, but confirmed it was a small number, and that they were in talks to extend the relief to other qualifying claimants.
The class action, which is being managed in two stages, is still at the first stage during which liability is to be determined by the court. Only if Tiger Brands is found to be liable will the issue of causation arise, in the second stage of the class action, as well as an assessment of compensation payable to qualifying claimants for damages suffered.
So far, 1 086 people are claimants in the matter – it includes those who contracted listeriosis, their dependants and their caregivers.
Tiger Brands has said it was committed to resolving the issue but has maintained it has had difficulty in getting critical epidemiological information required for its case, even turning to the courts to get it.
But this hasn’t stopped criticism of its failure to settle.
In the statement, it said it was “particularly pleased to report” that progress has been made in its longstanding efforts to gain access to the National Institute for Communicable Diseases’ (NICD) records related to the outbreak.
“The NICD has agreed to co-operate with us and will be making its records available as soon as possible,” said CEO Tjaart Kruger.
See more from MedicalBrief archives:
Tiger Brands in talks to pay urgent listeriosis medical bills
‘Overwhelming evidence’, but listeriosis case still on pause
Tiger Brands listeriosis class action still awaiting trial date
Tiger Brands' listeriosis victims in legal limbo for 3 years