Serving in the Armed Forces is an honour for many - but it can also be dangerous and physically demanding. As a result, injuries at work for Armed Forces personnel are more common than in many other industries.
It is a question we get asked a lot - and the short answer is yes, but there are of course lots of different factors which will influence the type of case you can pursue.
The team of specialist lawyers here at Lanyon Bowdler have a great deal of understanding and experience of complex military cases, and will be able to talk you through your claim - starting with a friendly, down-to-earth chat about what’s happened and what you would like to do about it.
There are two main areas of legal claims which we assist with:
Negligence cases against the Ministry of Defence as an employer and as a provider of medical services, including physical and psychiatric injury.
Assistance with Armed Forces Compensation Scheme Claims, both initial applications, requests for review and tribunal appeals.
Like any employer, the Ministry of Defence is responsible for providing a safe working environment, underpinned by sound employment procedures, for all of its employees. There is of course an understanding (which will be agreed in each employment contract) that serving in hostile situations will bring its own element of risk - but there are still legal requirements which need to be followed to minimise that risk as much as possible.
The specialist lawyers at Lanyon Bowdler have experience of dealing with serious head injuries, amputee cases, occupational injury and stress and work cases, and PTSD cases - all involving people who served or were serving in the Armed Forces.
Listen here as we speak with a client, who's a veteran and sufferer of PTSD. He talks about his need to take action against the MOD for his injuries, how difficult it was to take that first step to pursue a claim, and the stigma that still surrounds PTSD.
The Armed Forces Compensation Scheme (AFCS) provides compensation for injury, illness or death caused whilst serving in the Armed Forces, other than in combat.
There is no obligation to establish fault under the scheme, which means if the injury was caused by service, the scheme will provide compensation provided the eligibility criteria are met, but the amount that can be recovered is limited - up to a maximum £570,000.
Servicemen and women can also bring a civil case to seek, as far as is possible, damages to return them to the position they would have been in if it were not for their injury.
Civil cases often relate to injuries received in training, and from using faulty equipment, but can also relate to clinical negligence where the MoD was providing medical treatment for servicemen and women.
Specialists at Lanyon Bowdler have a detailed understanding of the Armed Forces Compensation Scheme and can guide you through the process from start to finish.
The firm also works with local agencies through the Armed Forces Community Covenant so we can provide a holistic approach to support and assistance for our clients.
We work with a local Operations Group in Shrewsbury which supports veteran's needs, working together to solve the problem and improve the situation. The group is made up of representatives from numerous charities and support groups including Help for Heroes, the local council, Combat Stress, Walking with the Wounded and West Mercia Police.
Armed Forces Outreach in Shropshire
In this episode, you'll hear us chatting with Sarah Kerr about the support Shropshire council offer to all military personnel, veterans and their families, through their armed forces outreach programme. Sarah is ex-military herself, and acts as the Outreach Support Coordinator for Shropshire Council.
The Headley Court Veteran's Orthopaedic Centre
This episode's all about the amazing work of The Headley Court Veteran's Orthopaedic Centre at Robert Jones & Anges Hunt Hospital in Oswestry. Carl talks about his inspiration for creating and developing the veteran's service that's seen around 25,000 patients over the past nine years. He talks about how it's funded, and his future plans for the centre.
If you have been injured whilst serving with the Armed Forces, you may be entitled to compensation which can help pay for treatment or adaptations to your home which can make a tremendous difference to your quality of life.
Why not give our friendly team of Personal Injury Claim Solicitors a call to see how we can help? Use the online enquiry form and someone will get back to you.
We have offices in Shrewsbury, Bromyard, Conwy, Hereford, Ludlow, Oswestry and Telford, and we have dealt with cases for people from all over the UK.
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Lanyon Bowdler is a trading name of Lanyon Bowdler LLP which is a limited liability partnership incorporated in England and Wales, registered number OC351948.
Lanyon Bowdler is authorised and regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA). SRA number: 534828.
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