A FORMER miner has voiced fears that ex-pitmen could unwittingly disqualify themselves from new fast-track payments by attending medicals.

John Saiger 57, from Bowburn, near Durham, is agonising over whether he should keep an appointment to have a medical examination next week.

It follows advice by the Claimants' Solicitors Group (CSG) that until a new system of fast-track payments is in place early next year, claimants who believe they may be eligible for such pay-outs should take legal advice about having full medical examinations.

A Department of Trade and Industry spokeswoman confirmed that some claimants could make themselves ineligible for the new fast-track payments if they went ahead with a medical examination.

Mr Saiger complained that his own solicitors were unaware of the potential dangers of attending a medical.

"I don't want to lose out for the sake of a month," he said.

A new way of speeding up compensation payments for living ex-miners with lung complaints is being finalised after a court ruling.

But the old system of assessing claimants is continuing until the new arrangements are in place.

Arrangements for speeding up payments to widows and families of deceased former miners will be subject to a ruling in the High Court this Friday.

So far, the DTI have suggested that flat-rate payments of £1,200 to widows and £1,000 to next of kin should be made where the miner died at least 20 years ago and medical records are unlikely to be available. Fast-track payments will be available to the relatives of miners who died more recently with the option of having the records assessed by a chest specialist.

Last night, Roger Maddocks, of Newcastle law firm Irwin Mitchell, spokesman for the CSG, said all solicitors should be aware of the potential pitfalls of attending medicals while the new system was being put in place.

On Friday the claimants' side would be putting "more focused and more flexible" counter-proposals to the court, he added.

Mr Saiger said he was concerned at the situation.

"I think they should have suspended all medical examinations until all of this was sorted out. Solicitors must be sending quite a few people for medicals who could lose out," said Mr Saiger, who worked at collieries in East Hetton and Hetton-le-Hole for 15 years.