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Claiming against the RAF for hearing loss.

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glasses said:
Just wondering if anyone can offer their pearls of wisdom on claiming against the RAF for hearing loss? Not just after leaving but perhaps whilst still serving. Ta.
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This is not gospel and it will need more detailed research to confirm my thoughts but from years in a tin bashing environment this is a topic I have looked into more than once. For starters keep everything you can that records your hearing standard as it was, as it is now, the lot, as much as you can lay your hands on. I think it unlikely you could claim anything whilst still serving but once out of the mob it's a different matter. Surprisingly the British legion is a top place to start and are very good with such claims and are worth asking about levels of hearing imparement and payments that may be forthcoming. Years ago hearing loss gave a you a pension for life now though I think it's a one off lump sum. The level of hearing loss is also a factor you need to show at least 20% degradation of hearing to claim anything. Amazingly quite a lot of people only show an 18% degradation when tested by the people who would have to pay out if 20% was proven therefore avoiding the need for a costly payout. For a rough guide 20% is getting very near hearing aid territory.
 
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Interesting.:0

My old man spent 35 years in the RAF and most of those under Valiants, Vulcans, Javelins, Meteors without ear defenders. He is now 73 and almost deaf.

He tells me that in those days there was non of that girly ear defending HSE stuff. Time to cash in his Royal British Legion Membership vouchers me thinks.... thanks for the heads ups guys.
 
I had snags years ago when I signed on to 22yrs. I failed a hearing test in my right ear. After many more tests and a trip to see the RAF ENT specialist Wing Commander I got a G2 marker on my med records. He said at the time it was due to working on aircraft and I could look forward to a claim when I leave the service. I made sure he had it noted on my records it was due to my job.
 
I chatted to an old friend of mine and he has mentioned more than once that if you fired SLR's some years ago then a claim is viable due to the fact, that at the time they were still about the ear defenders supplied were insuficiant.
This again is just a chat I had with a friend but worth looking into.
 
Oddly enough I posted my claim forms to the RBL this very morning!

I sent a quick email to the RBL (it only allows something like 200 characters) and received a reply less than 48 hours later telling me they were sending the forms out.

I have filled these in, but I fully expect to have some difficulty as I was always told my hearing was borderline. However that is total hearing loss over the full range. When my high frequency tolerance is taken in isolation it is well below the standard.

Industrial Deafnes is mainly restricted to the high frequencies and causes difficulty in hearing childrens and womens voices and the virtual shut down in situations where background noise is high. This for me means I now rarely go top the pub as I cannot take part in conversations, with the speaker being drowned out completely by the normal noise in the establishment. But, I can also quite truthfully claim I never heard the Long Haired Sgt Major when she is rattling on about the bog seat position etc.!

One thing where I expect to make a strong challenge is the provision of ANR headsets for the C130J but not for the K. I am led to believe that it was decided that compo claims would be cheaper than provisioning claims and that a letter exists to that effect.

I will endeavour to keep Goaters informed of the process as it evolves.

Jimps
 
Been on a perm medical downgrade with a right ear deafness for the last 5 years so the option was to stay in a, claim a good wage and see my time out. I had my final medical at the BAE Base in Norfolk last week and low and behold I got a chit today telling me that I am fit to continue working in a noise hazardous environemt (as spelt on the form) WTF does that tell you about the standards.....
 
This is all very interesting. I left the mob in 1971, having fired the .303 with no protection (it took a day to recover), then the 7.62 with little better. When I worked as a civvy at Cosford, I had my ears checked.
It transpired that I'm suffering from 'Gunner's Ear' as it's known in the audiology trade. Not bad enough to warrant a hearing aid, but bad enough to ruin my normal hearing of conversation, or (worse), music.

I was told that a claim is not likely to succeed.

If anyone knows of any changed rules that might enable me to claim a modest sum, please advise.
 
If I hadn't posted the forms this morning , I could have given you the definitive as timel imits are well laid out in it.

Off the top of my head you have to claim within 5 years of your 'injury'. However I think that is for claims under the Armed Forces Compensation Act 2005. There was a huge section on the form for people injured during WW11 though so the regs may be different for pre 2005 claims.

Fill in this form with your details and email it off. As I said they got back to me in less than 48 hours.

http://www.britishlegion.org.uk/contact/index.cfm?contactid=sm_4

Good luck and do let us know how you get on, I intend to update Goaters on the post 2005 claim, perhaps you could do the same for pre 2005?

Jimps
 
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Many years ago, an aviator investigated making a claim against the RAF for hearing degradation following many years flying in Shackleton aircraft. He'd got what's known today as 'Shackleton Ear'. This started an immense ball rolling and most of the ex-Shackleton fleet were paid a 'one-off' payment of £2,500 for their 'high' or 'low end' hearing loss. The stage has therefore already been set. If you think you've got a case, take advice from a legal expert who deals in this sort of field. I can only imagine that any compensation received these days would be immense in comparison!
 
A few years ago I failed my LOS30 medical. I was given something like 23 days to clear, then a very helpful nurse went through my documents and found I had been going deaf for about 10 years. SMC decided they would fast track my case and in the mean time sign me on with a temp downgrade. Later I was fitted with a digital hearing aid, still later I had an operation to try to repair the damage. I now find myself in the same state as some of you seem to be in; a bit deaf, not enough to claim, but bad enough that I don't like noisy bars and clubs because I can't differentiate between all the noises going on. If you are diagnosed as having Otosclerosis, (A natural condition and the most common form of deafness in middle aged men.) I suspect you will get nothing. It's natural and not as a result of anything you did or didn't do in the mob.
 
POB said:
I now find myself in the same state as some of you seem to be in; a bit deaf, not enough to claim, but bad enough that I don't like noisy bars and clubs because I can't differentiate between all the noises going on. If you are diagnosed as having Otosclerosis, (A natural condition and the most common form of deafness in middle aged men.) I suspect you will get nothing. It's natural and not as a result of anything you did or didn't do in the mob.
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To echo others comments I to struggle in pubs and bars with sorting conversation from the background noise of the venue and hearing the Mrs clearly. Hearing loss through getting older is quite natural as is losing some of the higher frequencies. So as we age we lose the level of hearing we once had. The decision the medics must make is to decide if your hearing loss is due to your age or your working environment. One gets you nothing the other MAY get you something.
 
Tin basher said:
To echo others comments I to struggle in pubs and bars with sorting conversation from the background noise of the venue and hearing the Mrs clearly. Hearing loss through getting older is quite natural as is losing some of the higher frequencies. So as we age we lose the level of hearing we once had. The decision the medics must make is to decide if your hearing loss is due to your age or your working environment. One gets you nothing the other MAY get you something.
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My problems sarted around 1985 and the height of the Cold War, spending many hours listening to HF nets talking to out water based friends. Since then the time spent on these nets has been reduced dramaticlly to no more that two hours a day. To me this has got to be some form admitanance by the MOD that it may be a contrbuting factor to a large number of my trade going deaf at a certain age...
 
Working on Tonkas in HAS's for me I think. I just had a medical for LOS30 and the doc said about my hearing. I saw a specialist ENT guy a few years ago and he dropped my hearing cat to H2 meaning I should be checked every year. Here's the catch, I haven't been checked every year so I think the RAF has failed in it's duty of care towards me. I only found out I should be checked every year when I was posted to that dump in Norfolk.
 
Got a letter this morning from SPVA.

It was just an acknowledgement of their receiving my claim and it clarified which scheme my claim will be dealt with under.

As I served both before and after 6 Apr 2005, my claim will be dealt with under the Armed forces and Reserved Forces (Compensation Scheme) before being considered under the War Pension scheme. They have said that because of this, my claim may take longer to process.

I will keep you all posted on the developments.

Jimps
 
From POB:-
I now find myself in the same state as some of you seem to be in; a bit deaf, not enough to claim, but bad enough that I don't like noisy bars and clubs because I can't differentiate between all the noises going on. If you are diagnosed as having Otosclerosis, (A natural condition and the most common form of deafness in middle aged men.) I suspect you will get nothing. It's natural and not as a result of anything you did or didn't do in the mob.


I'm glad to know it's not just me. I was beginning to wonder.
XB
 
I worked with or near Gazelles for a few years and with all sorts of other noisey helicopters and aeroplanes for 24 years in the mob.

For being very high-tone deaf I got the princely sum of £1500 for a one-off payment, after an assessment by an independant clinic after leaving the RAF.

A colleague of mine told me that I should claim, a few months after leaving in 1999. I did, and it worked a treat. From my experience then, it worked better if you did not have any records to attest to. The Tests simply compared me to a 'normal' UK standard.
 
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