Did a bit more research and found some info that indicates this may be a registry permissions problem.

Click on Start then Run, type regedit and press Enter.
Expand HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\ControlSet001\Enum\USB
Right click on USB in the left pane and select Permissions.
Select SYSTEM.

What boxes are checked in the Permissions for System area. Should be Full Control and Read. If not, check them.

In any case, click the Advanced button. Again, select SYSTEM.
Check Replace permission entries on child objects .... then click Apply then Yes.

Reboot and try the install again, see if it works.

If not, many other posts with this type of problem have been resolved only by reinstalling XP. If it comes to that, make sure you backup your data first, then try a
Repair Install. If that doesn't work do a Clean Install - Michael Stevens Tech

A Repair install leaves all your data and most software intact though you would have to apply all service packs and Windows Updates as well as Anti-virus and Firewall at a minimum.

A Clean install leaves you with nothing so make sure you have everything you want backed up first.

Thank you Ztruker for your help on this problem.
I tried the registry permissions as you suggested but alas no change.
At this point in time I don't think I will attempt either a fresh or repair install as I hope to get a laptop in the near future and that might then be the best time to do this if it ends up being the only solution open to me. It's a shame it couldn't be solved in an easier way but it's not the end of the world and I'm not giving up just yet.

Regards and appreciation

crankek