On the first day of evidence in a trial at the High Court, it was revealed that four former members of the armed forces, who suffered noise induced hearing loss whilst serving, have agreed settlement deals with the Ministry of Defence. Read the claimants’ opening note.
Two of the four who have settled their cases were amongst six lead cases which were due to be heard at the trial which is expected to last for 9 weeks. The two claims settled for an average of £366,125.
Andrew Davies, 58, who served in the Corps of Royal Engineers between 1983 and 2022, reaching the rank of Lieutenant Colonel, settled for £182,250. Mr Davies served in numerous theatres, including Northern Ireland, Iraq and Afghanistan, and has worn hearing aids since he was 43. He was permanently medically downgraded in 2011 as a result of his noise induced hearing loss.
Mr Davies said:
“I gave the military everything I had. Serving for nearly four decades was an honour and a privilege, but to be left with a permanent injury that could have been prevented has been incredibly hard to accept. The hearing loss has impacted my family, my social life, and even medical care. Sadly, what happened to me isn’t unique, and I hope cases like mine shine a light on the failures to protect service personnel so that future soldiers don’t suffer in the same way. While the compensation cannot restore my hearing, it does finally acknowledge what I lost and provides some justice.”
Stephen Hambridge, 46, served in the Royal Regiment of Fusiliers from 1999 to 2008 and then in the Royal Corps of Engineers from 2008 to 2012. He served two combat-intensive tours of Afghanistan, as well as tours of Kosovo and Northern Ireland. Mr Hambridge was diagnosed with noise induced hearing loss and tinnitus while serving in 2012, leading to a permanent medical downgrade and resulting in his departure from service. Mr Hambridge settled for £550,000.
Harry Steinberg KC told the court that two other claimants involved in the action, but not as lead claimants in this trial, have also settled their claims.
The settled claims announced today are all far in excess of average lump sums awarded under a Ministry of Defence Armed Forces Compensation Scheme for noise induced hearing loss. From data provided in response to a Freedom of Information Request in September 2025, the average lump sum payment to people claiming under the scheme for financial years 2020 – 2025 was £6554.77.
Now, the remaining four cases will be heard as lead cases for the more than 10,000 claimants involved in the litigation – the majority of which are represented by our specialist military team.
Simon Ellis, Partner and Head of our Military Department commented:
“The settlements announced today represent a victory for our clients, and highlight the impact that hearing loss can have on the future earning potential of members of the armed forces.”
The four servicemen were all exposed to excessive noise during their military service and therefore all have suffered hearing loss, and all but one suffer from tinnitus.
Previously, an agreement between our military lawyers and MoD had been reached which saw a range of defences dropped for clients of Hugh James, including breach of duty of care, contributory negligence, crown immunity, and limitation.
The trial starting this week will now only consider the actual causation of three of the lead claimants hearing loss and the amount of damages the MoD will have to pay to those where causation is established
The trial began hearing evidence on Wednesday 8th October, with the case of Christopher Lambie, and last for 9 weeks.
