THE insurers of the man who caused the Selby rail disaster say the inquest verdict of unlawful killing on those who died will not affect the way it handles victims' compensation claims.

A spokeswoman for Fortis, which insured Land Rover driver Gary Hart, said individual claims would continue to be handled and paid by the company.

She said: "Fortis has settled 47 of the fatal or injury claims, with another 47 outstanding.

"It will be some time yet before the long-term effects of injuries to many of the victims can be properly assessed and, until that time, the amount of compensation due to those claimants is unclear.

"Fortis has in the meantime made interim payments to 34 of the remaining 47 claimants and offered to fund rehabilitation costs for many of those injured."

The statement followed yesterday's inquest verdict of unlawful killing on the ten men who died at Great Heck in February 2001, after a Land Rover driven by Hart went off the M62 on to the East Coast Main Line, causing a collision between a GNER express and a Freightliner coal train.

Hart is serving a five-year jail sentence for causing the ten deaths by dangerous driving, after a Leeds Crown Court jury found he had fallen asleep at the wheel.

After the verdict, Kevin Hughes, solicitor for 17 people injured in the crash and for the families of three who were killed, said it made it clear that one man was 100 per cent liable for the deaths.

He said it was unlikely that any compensation recovered on behalf of clients would require contributions from anyone other than Fortis. The verdict sent the strong message that driving without sufficient sleep was unacceptable and could lead to tragic consequences.

Mary Dunn, whose train driver husband, Stephen Dunn, died in the disaster, said the inquest and the criminal case against Hart had shown that the only fault lay in "an individual's responsibility when driving".

"If anything positive could come out of these two years, it is that every individual driver takes responsibility to ensure they are fit to drive at all times and then accepts responsibility should something happen," she said.

During the inquest, Mrs Dunn, of Brayton, thanked the police, companies and other authorities who had worked with and for the families since the disaster and had shown "incredible empathy" for them.

Updated: 10:01 Saturday, September 13, 2003