Our military claims solicitors helped a client, Callum*, claim compensation after he was hit by shrapnel when a weapon was fired in a small room. The shrapnel gave Callum a brain injury and he now suffers from chronic pain and limited mobility.
The compensation will cover Callum’s lost earnings, now he can no longer serve in the Army, and fund the care he needs to make the best recovery possible.
What Happened To Callum
Callum, was deployed to Afghanistan and was on duty in a defence tower at camp Bastion in July 2014.
Callum and his colleague were sat in a small room at the bottom of the tower cleaning their rifles when his colleague stood up to perform a function test of his rifle. His colleague readied the weapon and squeezed the trigger, causing the weapon to fire a live round which ricocheted off the walls and hit Callum. Because of the lack of space in the room, the shrapnel hit Callum’s head and body with great force, causing him to suffer multiple injuries to his leg as well as a brain injury.
Because of his injuries, the Army medically discharged Callum as he was no longer fit to serve.
How Callum’s Injuries Affected His Life
Callum went home to his family to recover. His wife had to provide him with a lot of care, including: helping him move about, dressing him, cooking for him and emotionally supporting him.
Because of his reduced mobility and high levels of pain, he also struggled to look after his two young children. This meant his wife had to care for him and the children, putting their family under a lot of strain.
Callum also struggled with losing his income after the Army’s decision to medically discharge him, especially because his injuries were very limiting on what work he could do.
Gathering Evidence To Support Callum’s Case
In 2016, Callum contacted our specialist military injury solicitors to help him claim compensation for his injuries. Andrew Buckham took on Callum’s case and started putting evidence together to show that the MoD was at fault for Callum’s accident.
Andrew requested Callum’s medical records as evidence of what caused his injuries. Andrew then got in touch with the MoD’s solicitors and got them admit their responsibility for Callum’s injuries in writing.
Andrew then got to work gathering evidence of the support and rehabilitation Callum needed to make the best possible recovery from his injuries. He approached experts in neurophysiology, psychiatry, pain management, care and neurology to ask them to report on Callum’s brain injury, mobility, pain levels and his care needs.
Helping Callum Get The Compensation He Needed
Andrew showed the evidence he’d gathered to the MoD’s solicitors, asking them to negotiate a settlement. Despite having already admitted their responsibility for Callum’s accident, the MoD’s solicitors didn’t agree to a settlement meeting until right before the Trial.
The MoD then made a compensation offer of £95,000 which Andrew rejected, knowing Callum deserved more. Andrew then got the MoD to offer Callum a life-changing six figure amount which would be enough to compensate him for his injuries.
The compensation helped give Callum the independence and financial security he needed to move forward with his life.
It also allowed Callum’s wife to take a step back from caring for her husband so she could focus on taking her of their children, while Callum recovered.
The compensation also helped Callum to retrain for a new career and compensate him for his lost income and career opportunities from being medically discharged from the Army.
“Callum has a lot of mental strength and fortitude and was an incredible client to work with. I’m very glad to have been able to help him get the compensation he deserved after he suffered such catastrophic injuries from an unfortunate accident.” – Andrew Buckham, military injury solicitor.
If you’ve suffered an injury while working in military service, our specialist military injury solicitors could help you claim compensation.
*Not actual names used
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