Assaulted During Military Service? Your Right to Claim Compensation

Being assaulted during military service can have devastating and long-lasting consequences. Whether the assault was committed by a fellow service person, occurred during training, involved bullying or harassment, or resulted in serious physical or psychiatric injury, it is important to understand that compensation may be available.

Many serving personnel and veterans wrongly assume that an injury caused by another member of the Armed Forces is simply “part of service life” or that nothing can be done years after the event. In reality, there may be several avenues for compensation depending on the circumstances of the assault and the injuries suffered.

Can I Bring a Claim for an Assault in the Armed Forces?

The answer is yes.  A claim may arise where:

• You were physically assaulted by another service person.
• You were the victim of sexual assault or rape.
• You were subjected to bullying, harassment or a campaign of abuse.
• The Ministry of Defence (MoD) failed to take reasonable steps to protect you from a known risk.
• The chain of command failed to properly investigate complaints or take appropriate action.
• The assault led to physical or psychiatric injury.

While an individual perpetrator may be criminally prosecuted, a civil claim for compensation is separate and focuses on obtaining financial compensation for the injuries and losses suffered.

The MoD can, in some circumstances, be legally responsible where it failed to take reasonable steps to safeguard service personnel or where negligence contributed to the injury. The MoD routinely deals with common law compensation claims brought by serving and former personnel.

Common Examples

Examples of claims may include:

Sexual Assault During Service

A soldier, sailor or airman who is sexually assaulted by a colleague may suffer:

• PTSD
• Depression
• Anxiety disorders
• Alcohol dependency
• Relationship difficulties
• Loss of military career

Compensation may be available through a civil claim, the Armed Forces Compensation Scheme (AFCS), the Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority (CICA), or a combination of these routes depending on the facts.

Violent Assault by Fellow Personnel

Examples include:

• Assaults in barracks
• Mess incidents
• Training establishment violence
• Off-duty attacks involving colleagues

Where serious injury results, compensation may be recoverable for pain and suffering, loss of earnings and future financial losses.

Bullying and Harassment

Repeated bullying, intimidation or harassment can give rise to recognised psychiatric injury.  Claims may arise where complaints were ignored, warnings were missed, or the chain of command failed to intervene appropriately.

The Importance of Seeking Legal Advice Early

One of the biggest mistakes made by service personnel is delaying legal advice.

Early legal advice can help:

• Preserve evidence.
• Obtain witness statements.
• Secure military records.
• Obtain medical evidence.
• Protect limitation periods.
• Identify all available compensation routes.

Many individuals do not appreciate they may have a claim until years later when symptoms develop or a mental health diagnosis is finally made.

An experienced military claims solicitor can assess:

• Whether there is a civil claim.
• Whether an AFCS application should be made.
• Whether a CICA application is available.
• Whether there are grounds for a Service Complaint.
• The value of the claim.

Time Limits

Civil Claims Against the MoD

For most personal injury claims, proceedings should normally be commenced within:

• Three years from the date of injury, or
• Three years from the date of knowledge, being the date when a person first knew that their injury may have been caused by negligence.

The court has discretion in some cases to allow claims outside the normal limitation period, but this should never be relied on and it is very important not to delay seeking legal advice.

Assault and Harassment Claims

Different limitation periods may apply depending upon the legal basis of the claim, particularly where harassment or intentional wrongdoing is involved.

Specialist advice should be sought urgently where assaults occurred several years ago.

Armed Forces Compensation Scheme

In many cases, AFCS claims must be submitted within seven years of the injury, illness or relevant date of onset. Different considerations may apply to conditions which emerge over time, such as PTSD or other psychiatric injuries.

Sexual Abuse and Historic Assault Claims

Historic sexual abuse claims often involve complex limitation issues.

The courts recognise that victims may take many years before they feel able to report what happened. It is therefore essential to obtain specialist advice even where the assault occurred many years ago.

What Compensation Can Be Claimed?

Compensation is intended to place the injured person, so far as money can do so, in the position they would have been in had the injury not occurred.

General Damages

This compensates for:

• Pain and suffering for injuries caused.
• Aggravated damages.
• Loss of amenity or impact on day to day living and hobbies.
• Physical injuries.
• Psychiatric injuries.

Examples might include:

• PTSD
• Anxiety disorders
• Depression
• Chronic pain
• Orthopaedic injuries

Past Financial Losses

These may include:

• Loss of military pay.
• Loss of pension.
• Loss of fringe benefits including operational allowances, health/dental care, gym membership.
• Treatment costs.
• Travel expenses.
• Care and assistance.

Future Financial Losses

In more serious cases compensation may include:

• Loss of military career.
• Loss of promotion prospects.
• Reduced civilian earning capacity.
• Pension loss.
• Future treatment costs.
• Future care needs.

For younger service personnel medically discharged because of psychiatric injury following an assault, future loss claims can be substantial.

Evidence That Can Assist a Claim

Useful evidence may include:

• Service police investigations.
• Court Martial records.
• Service Complaints.
• Medical records.
• Welfare records.
• Occupational health records.
• Witness statements.
• Psychiatric reports.
• Personnel records.

Importantly, a successful criminal conviction is not always required before a civil claim can succeed.

What If No One Was Convicted?

Many victims wrongly believe they cannot pursue compensation because:

• No charges were brought.
• A Court Martial acquitted the accused.
• Evidence was considered insufficient for prosecution.

A civil claim operates under a different legal test to criminal proceedings.

The fact that a criminal case did not result in conviction does not automatically prevent a compensation claim.  It is important to seek advice as soon as possible.

Conclusion

No member of the Armed Forces should accept assault, abuse, bullying or sexual violence as an inevitable part of military life.

Where an assault has caused physical injury, psychiatric injury, loss of career or financial loss, compensation may be available through one or more legal routes. The most important step is obtaining specialist legal advice as early as possible so that evidence can be preserved and limitation deadlines are not missed.

For serving personnel and veterans, early advice can make the difference between a successful claim and losing the right to pursue compensation altogether.#

For help and advice on making a military injury claim, contact our team on 0113 224 7837 or email [email protected].