The Ministry of Defence is one of the largest employers in the UK, employing over 150,000 personnel in both combat roles in the Army, Air Force and Navy and in civilian roles.
Members of the MOD in combat roles are often exposed to high levels of noise in live firing exercises, dummy fire exercises and drills which have the potential to damage their hearing in the short and long term.
It has become clear over recent years that there are thousands of past MOD employee and some current that are suffering with their hearing and/or have tinnitus as a result and now realise they are able to seek compensation for their loss.
Military deafness claims are like many other hearing loss claims in that we need to take a detailed account from the potential claimant, seek to consider appropriate medical evidence to prove you losses and then look to reach settlement on your behalf.
We obtain their information from you remotely, and should you wish to discuss a potential case it is always best to speak to one of our industrial disease specialists to obtain more information.
If you have been an employee of the MOD, either present or in the past, and you feel your hearing has been affected, then potentially you could be able to claim.
If you have been employed by the MOD anytime after 1987 then you may be able to claim.
We will need to determine the circumstances of your employment with them and whether you will have had sufficient exposure to noise. All of this can be considered and determined in a discussion with you.
We will also need to determine whether your hearing has been affected by the noise you have been exposed to and this can be determined by a simply, quick and painless hearing test.
We would always encourage anyone who has potentially been exposed to noise with their employer to contact us sooner rather than later, as there are certain time bars to bring claims which we also need to consider.
The most common signed of hearing loss is that you are struggling with one the following:
You may also be suffering from tinnitus – otherwise described as a ringing or buzzing in your ears – this can be continuous or intermittent but can be a sign that hearing has been damaged by noise.
There is a compensation scheme run by the Ministry of Defence which compensates people regardless of any fault and provide compensation on assessment carried out by the MOD directly. This is known as the Armed Forces Compensation Scheme.
The Scheme is intended to compensate individuals for any injuries that may have resulted from their service, and this include hearing loss. A claim for the AFCS must be made within 7 years of the injury.
Whilst the Armed Forces Compensation Scheme can serve as a good mechanism to obtain some compensation from the MOD, their decision to award is based solely upon their consideration of the circumstances and your injury.
A decision in then made as to an amount of compensation for the injuries, the range can vary and often will be a nominal amount when compared to amounts of compensation that can be obtained through civil means.
By civil means we are referring to bringing a claim through Solicitors for your injuries. Bringing a claim through solicitors in the only way in which you can ensure that all possible and the maximum compensation for your injuries and any others losses can be achieved.
There is also no reason why you cannot bring a claim through the civil process and through AFCS. Anything you are awarded through the AFCS may simply be reduced from compensation awarded in due course.
Assessing an amount of compensation that will be sought in any case is difficult to establish without knowledge of the injury itself or the impacts is has upon you.
For example, we have many heads of loss to consider. For example:
General Damages – Award for the injuries themselves
These are usual assessed in accordance with Judicial College Guidance. This can range as follows:
Special Damages
This can include all other losses as a result of your injuries, which can be:
The amount of compensation that can be recovered will vary dependent upon person circumstances.
Article – High Court Ruling allows 3,000+ Military claims to be made on a single form
Oakwood Solicitors Ltd agrees to work on your industrial disease claim on a ‘no-win, no-fee’ basis. If your claim is unsuccessful, you will not be expected to pay us a penny. If you are successful in your claim, we take a percentage of the compensation meaning that the only time we will receive money is if we have brought your claim to a fruitful conclusion.
You will have a dedicated advisor who will see your claim through from start to finish, assisting you in the event of any queries or issues you may have. If it is preferable to you, we are able to assign a female advisor to carry out your claim.
Your case handler will also continue to provide regular updates until the conclusion of your claim, ensuring the process is as stress-free and effortless as possible.
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