Our military injury solicitors helped serviceman claim compensation against the Ministry of Defence for noise induced hearing loss and tinnitus.
Mark joined the military when he was just 16. He trained and later became a badge sniper. During his training he was exposed to constant noise from live and blank firing rounds. The noise was especially loud because he used powerful guns such as sniper rifles and SA80 rifles.
Mark also had to wear a Personal Role Radio (PRR) in his left ear. This is a small radio that helps people communicate over short distances. He also wore Amplivox ear defenders with yellow foam earplugs. The yellow ear plugs would loosen and fall out which meant they offered little protection against the constant gunfire.
While deployed in May 2015, Mark started noticing problems with his hearing and because of this he could no longer serve as a sniper. He was diagnosed with noise induced hearing loss and tinnitus and was medically downgraded. This meant he had to serve at a lower rank, with lower pay.
Mark stayed in the army and started a new role as an army tailor. Despite his hearing problems, Mark was later promoted from Lance Corporal to Corporal in December 2018. Although this was a positive promotion, Mark still felt that his hearing problems had impaired his military career.
By serving as a sniper, Mark was hoping to be promoted to Warrant Officer Class 2 (WO2). A WO2 provides technical expertise in the combat field and helps combine new technology into military operations. However, because of his injury and downgrade, he would not be able to reach this position without being in combat.
How We Helped
Mark contacted our military injury team to see if we could help him claim against the Ministry of Defence (MOD). Mark realised that his position as an army tailor meant he would earn less and get a smaller pension than he would have if he was a sniper.
Our solicitors, led by Carol Purang, made a claim against the MOD. Marks' injury meant he would not reach his career goals he hoped for and he deserved compensation for this. We claimed for Marks’ suffering and past and future loss of earnings and pension.
At first, the MOD wouldn’t accept that Mark would lose out on potential future earnings because he was still serving. The MOD argued that Marks’ military career would follow the same path even if his hearing wasn’t damaged.
The claim was set to go to a joint settlement meeting (JSM). Unusually, just before the JSM, the MOD offered £100,000 which Mark also rejected.
During the JSM, Marks’ legal team negotiated a £380,000 settlement.
Mark was extremely happy with the result. He was pleased that the MOD recognised that the damage to his hearing would affect the rest of his life and future earnings. He also had to deal with the disappointment of not reaching his aspirations.
Carol said:
“Mark joined the military with the hopes to progress his career over many years. Unfortunately his dreams were cut short. We’re glad we could support him to get the MOD to recognise that his suffering deserves the compensation he received.”
If you or a loved one suffers from an illness or injury that the Ministry of Defence is responsible for, we could help. Contact our solicitors on 0370 1500 100 or fill out our online form.
*Not client’s real name
Back to Client Stories
