Military Service Claims

That means:

• You should be properly trained and supervised
• Your equipment should be safe, well maintained and fit for purpose
• Your medical treatment should meet basic professional standards
• You should not be exposed to unnecessary risks, discrimination or abuse

You should not have to suffer poor planning, bad kit, negligent medical care or avoidable failures before or after an operation. If your injury, illness or loss stems from something that could and should have been avoided, you may have a claim, whether you are still serving, have now left the forces or are a bereaved family member trying to find answers. Bringing a claim does not question your loyalty to the regiment, it is about insisting that the same duty of care that exists in civilian life is honoured for those who wear the uniform.

Unsafe Equipment and Preventable Accidents

Behind every rank and number there is a person with a career, a family, a future. When systems fail, that future can change in an instant. Across the Army, the Navy and the RAF, we see injuries caused not by enemy action but by defective weapons and poor maintenance, faulty armoured vehicles and braking systems, inadequate body armour, helmets or PPE, failures in inspections of tools and machinery, poorly serviced aircraft and helicopters. From small arms that jam at the worst possible moment to vehicles that roll, crash or catch fire because something wasn’t checked. These aren’t just “hazards of the job”. They are in many cases, breaches of duty. The law allows you to challenge that. We also act in claims arising from parachute and aviation incidents where a malfunction, bad instruction or an overlooked risk has led to a life changing injury or loss of life. The physical damage is often obvious, but the invisible impact, the loss of role, the change in identity, the nightmares, can be just as serious.

Toxic Exposures and Long-Term Illness

Some injuries don’t show themselves straight away. RAF and other military personnel have been known to later develop cancers and serious illnesses after years working in and around aircraft and helicopters, breathing in exhaust fumes in hangars and flightlines. Those fumes can contain carcinogens such as benzene and other chemicals that have long been linked to serious blood and organ cancers. For years the risks were ignored. Protective systems, screening and monitoring were often not in place. Similarly, thousands of troops were given the anti-malarial drug Lariam (Mefloquine) without proper screening or warnings. Many were handed tablets as part of deployment packs and never told that the drug was associated with psychiatric and neurological side effects. For some, the result has been severe anxiety, depression and suicidal thoughts, nightmares and flashbacks that mimic post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), hallucinations, paranoia and changes in personality, memory problems and neurological symptoms. Parliament has since condemned the way Lariam was used and the MOD’s own policies have been rewritten. That has come too late though for those already harmed.

Heat, Cold and Training Injuries in the Military

Serving in the military often means operating in extremes, blistering heat, freezing wet winters and endless exercises on little rest. That doesn’t excuse heat exhaustion and heatstroke where risk wasn’t properly managed, non-freezing cold injuries (NFCIs) from repeated exposure to cold and wet without the proper clothing or breaks or training injuries from unrealistic tempo, poor supervision or unsafe conditions.  Numb, painful, permanently cold hands and feet with loss of circulation are particularly difficult to live with. Many careers have been cut short by injuries that could have been avoided with basic planning, kit and oversight.

Military deafness and Noise Damage

Gunfire, blasts, engines, machinery, musical bands and ceremonial duties, many roles involve relentless noise. If you weren’t properly protected or were given ear defenders that did not work you may now be living with noise induced hearing loss, tinnitus (a constant ringing or humming in the ears), sleep problems, irritability, difficulty following conversation, especially with background noise or social withdrawal. Damage to your hearing often creeps up slowly. It may only be later, sometimes years after leaving service that a diagnosis is made and the link to your time in the military becomes clear. A claim can help secure funds for hearing aids, treatment and the wider impact on your life and work.

Bullying, Harassment and Psychological Injury in the Armed Forces

Not every injury leaves a visible scar. Some service personnel endure years of bullying, harassment and humiliation from the very people they are meant to trust. Others suffer traumatic events, friendly fire incidents, near misses or repeated exposures to distressing scenes that chip away at their mental health. It is unacceptable to have been mocked, frozen out or targeted by seniors, faced racist, sexist or homophobic “banter” that was anything but harmless and felt trapped, where speaking up meant being labelled a problem. Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and other related trauma conditions are also unfortunately common in military personnel. The warning signs for so many were there for a long time, disturbed sleep, flashbacks, anger, feeling on edge or feeling detached. All too often those signs were dismissed as attitude issues or a personality problem rather than being recognised for what it actually was. The result? Lost years, broken relationships and personnel leaving without the help they so badly needed.  

Military Medical Negligence

You are entitled to competent medical care, whether that’s on a base, in a field hospital or in a rehabilitation unit. If medical standards fell below what a reasonably competent practitioner should have provided and you have been harmed as a result, you may be able to claim compensation. Serious conditions can be misdiagnosed or missed altogether, surgery performed negligently leading to infection or permanent disability, treatment delayed, inadequate or cut short leaving people worse off than they should have been and personnel sent back to duties too soon and re-injured as a result.

Unfair Accommodation Charges

For years, younger and unmarried personnel in Single Living Accommodation (SLA) have been charged more for basic quarters than married colleagues doing essentially the same job. These policies, based on age and marital status are now being challenged as potentially discriminatory and unlawful. If you have paid over the odds for SLA because of your age or relationship status, you may be able to claim back thousands of pounds in overpayments. This can apply whether you are still serving or have recently left.

Fatal Accidents

If you are reading this because someone you love never came home, we are truly sorry. You may have been told it was a tragic accident, that everything was done correctly, that it was “a risk of the job”. Part of you may accept that, another part may be asking;

• How exactly did this happen?
• Could it have been prevented?
• Has the full truth really been shared?

A claim can never replace a loved one, but what it can do is open up access to reports, documents and evidence that might otherwise remain hidden, provide financial support for dependants, funeral costs and future security and ensure lessons are learned. It is not disloyal to want answers, wanting the full picture is often the most loving thing a family can do.

Armed Forces Compensation Scheme (AFCS), Civil Claims and Time Limits

There are two main legal routes if you have been harmed by your service, firstly the armed forces compensation scheme, a no-fault government funded scheme with which you don’t have to prove negligence, only that your illness or injury was caused by your service. Secondly a civil claim which is pursued through the courts. In order for a negligence claim of this type to succeed you must show that the MoD owed you a duty of care, that duty was breached and the breach caused your injury or loss. The advantage of a civil claim over an AFCS claim is the compensation can be tailored to your situation including pain and suffering, past and future loss of earnings, therapy and rehabilitation, accommodation and mobility needs.

You can often run an AFCS and civil negligence claim in parallel but it is important to be aware of strict time limits (often three years from when you first knew your condition was linked to your service). Seeking advice early is important, even if you are not quite ready to commit to anything.

How Our Team Can Help

We act for serving personnel, veterans and families from all branches; British Army, Royal Navy, Royal Air Force, Royal Marines, Specialist units and Reservists. We understand the culture, the pressures and the loyalty that can make speaking out feel uncomfortable. Many of the people we have helped had never spoken to a solicitor before, many felt torn, proud of their service but deeply hurt by what had happened to them.

Here’s how we work; we listen first, you talk, followed by clear honest advice on whether you have a claim and what your options are. We gather the evidence, service records, medical notes, expert opinions and witness statements. We deal directly with the MoD and their solicitors so you don’t have to. We then keep you informed at every stage of the process.

Whether you are living with physical or psychological injury, worried that your illness is linked to your service, struggling after bullying or harassment, grieving after someone never came home or simply unsure what happened to you was something more, you don’t have to work it out alone. If you feel ready, get in touch for a confidential chat with our military claims team. We will help you to understand what a claim could achieve and what support is available.

You gave your country your best. You have every right to ask for better in return.

Military Service Claims FAQs