How To Make A Military Hearing Loss Claim
Being employed by the armed forces may mean you are exposed to excessive noise in several situations, both in training and in the field. Whether it is gunfire, an explosion, or any other type of noise exposure, you could find that you are suffering from suspected military hearing loss.
If you think you have been affected, GA Solicitors’ specialist noise-induced hearing loss team may be able to assist you with seeking compensation for your injury via a military hearing loss claim. This guide will walk you through the steps involved in obtaining compensation for military deafness, including how making a military deafness claim works, how much compensation you may be eligible for, and how long you can expect the legal process to take.
How does a military noise-induced hearing loss claim work?
Before entering into the formal process of securing military hearing loss compensation, it’s important to understand the steps you will need to go through to find out if you are eligible to make a claim.
At the outset of your claim, the first thing that needs to be established is the extent of your hearing loss. Your solicitor will therefore arrange a hearing test with a qualified audiologist. From this, an audiogram will be created which demonstrates the level at which your hearing has been impacted. If you instruct the team at GA Solicitors to help with your claim, we strive to make this process as easy for you as possible and use sites nationwide to limit any unnecessary travel.
Your solicitor will also request copies of both your medical and personnel records, which will be reviewed by an ear, nose and throat consultant, along with the audiogram results. They will then be able to determine if your hearing loss is more likely than not to be noise-induced hearing loss, rather than due to other natural reasons (such as ageing).
It is worth noting, that there is no upfront cost to you for this with GA Solicitors.
The final step is to take a statement from you to determine if the military hearing loss was due to the negligence of the armed forces rather than being from other sources. For example, the armed forces may have failed to provide adequate ear protectors, or they not have made you wear these on training exercises when they should have done so.
Once we have collated all this information, we will then prepare and send a letter of claim to the Ministry of Defence to start your claim for compensation detailing your diagnosis, the ways you have been exposed and the reason we consider they have been negligent.
How is military hearing loss compensation calculated?
In a claim of this nature, you can claim what is known as ‘general damages’. This is a payment for your pain, suffering and loss of amenity. This is to cover the injury itself and the restrictions to your daily life as a result of your hearing loss. This element of the military hearing loss claim is calculated by reference to the Judicial College Guidelines.
Apart from the damages of the injury itself, you may be able to claim for loss of earnings for any time you have been unable to work or been placed on restricted duties due to your hearing loss injury.
The loss of earnings claim can increase substantially if:
- You end up being medically discharged due to your hearing condition
- You are restricted on the future work you can undertake
- Your career progression has been restricted due to a lack of promotion opportunities, due to your hearing loss
- You have been downgraded for an extended period of time.
Depending on the prognosis of your military hearing injury, it may be recommended by the experts that you have hearing aids to reduce the effects of your hearing loss or tinnitus (ringing in the ears). This claim will be calculated for the costs of hearing aids being paid for privately,y and can add a significant amount to the damages. You can find out more about how much your claim for military noise-induced hearing loss could be worth by reading our detailed guide.
How long will a military hearing loss claim be likely to last?
The time taken to secure compensation for military deafness can vary depending on several factors. This could be whether liability is admitted, whether there is a dispute over the level of damages being claimed and if there is a dispute regarding the evidence provided by the medical expert.
However, as a guide, most victims of military hearing loss can expect a claim of this nature to last between 9 to 18 months.
Start the process of making a claim with GA Solicitors
If you wish to commence the steps outlined in this article and explore the possibility of making a military deafness claim, GA Solicitors is on hand as a leading South West Law firm to guide you through the process. Our specialist team of solicitors in Plymouth have unique expertise in hearing loss and industrial disease cases, with wide-ranging experience securing sizeable compensation for serving military personnel and veterans.
The team is accredited by APIL, ranked in both Chambers UK and The Legal 500, and led by James Walsh, an industrial disease specialist who has dealt with noise-induced hearing loss claims for more than 25 years. The team’s breadth of experience means that you can be guaranteed effective legal advice as well as excellent levels of client care and support when you explore the possibility of making a claim with us.
Contact the team today on 01752 203500 or email enquiries@GAsolicitors.com for more information.
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