Victims say they were excluded from settlement deal

WHILE the lawyers who represented more than 200 claimants of the 2017/18 listeriosis outbreak have welcomed the recent commitment made by Tiger Brands to settle claims brought by the victims, some have slammed the company for excluding them from the offer placed on the table.

- SIYABONGA SITHOLE

Through the company's lead reinsurer, QBE Insurance Group, Tiger Brands presented a conditional settlement offer to the plaintiffs' legal team, with the offer said to apply to certain victims of the deadly 2017/2018 listeriosis outbreak.

The settlement specifically caters to victims who were affected by the ST6 strain of Listeria monocytogenes, which is the same strain that was traced back to the Enterprise Foods factory in Polokwane.

In 2017/2018, South Africa recorded the largest listeriosis outbreak in history, claiming the lives of 218 people mostly children and affecting over 1000 victims.