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The Armed Forces and Reserve Forces (Compensation Scheme) (Amendment) Order 2008

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EXPLANATORY NOTE

(This note is not part of the Order)

This Order amends the Armed Forces and Reserve Forces Compensation Scheme Order 2005 (“the Scheme”) which provides for benefits to be payable to or in respect of a person by reason of his illness or injury (whether physical or mental), or his death, which is caused (wholly or partly) by his service in the armed forces or the reserve forces.

This Order amends the Scheme in respect of its treatment of claims where more than one injury has been sustained in one incident. It also makes amendments to the Tariff for certain entries relating to amputation cases.

Article 7 amends article 15 of the Scheme (which provides for the calculation of the lump sum) by inserting paragraph (1A). This provides for the new article 15A to apply in place of paragraphs (2) to (7) where—

  • more than one injury is sustained in one incident,

  • the cause of those injuries occurred on or after the coming into force of this Order, and

  • the relevant percentage for the purpose of calculating the amount of any guaranteed income payment in accordance with article 16 for one or more such injuries is calculated as 100 per cent.

The calculation in relation to one injury sustained in one incident is unaltered. The position is also unaltered where more than one injury is sustained in one incident and the cause of those injuries occurred before the coming into force of this Order or where the cause of the injuries occurred after the coming into force of this Order but the relevant percentage for the purpose of calculating the guaranteed income payment is less than 100%.

The existing paragraphs (4) to (6) of article 15 provide for the recalculation of a claim where, after injury benefits have originally been awarded, a further claim in respect of injuries arising out of the same incident is made. Article 7(3) of this Order inserts new paragraphs (6A) and (6B) into article 15 of the Scheme to provide for the recalculation rules where the cause of the injuries occurred on or after the coming into force of this Order and, as a result of an increase in the lump sum award, the relevant percentage for the purpose of calculating the amount of a guaranteed income payment in accordance with article 16 is increased to 100%. Article 15(6B) requires the recalculation of the first claim and the determination of the further claim to be made pursuant to article 15A.

Article 8 inserts a new article 15A into the Scheme to deal with those cases in which more than one injury is sustained in one incident and the relevant percentage for the purpose of calculating the amount of any guaranteed income payment in accordance with article 16 for one or more such injuries is 100 per cent. In such cases, the amount of the lump sum is the total of the relevant amount (described in article 14(2)(b)) applicable to each such injury. The discounting rules contained in article 15(2) will not apply to such claims but an overall cap on the amount payable (of the amount specified at level 1 in column (a) of table 10 – currently £285,000) will apply. This amendment applies where the cause of the injuries occurred on or after the coming into force of this Order.

Article 8 also inserts a new article 15B into the Scheme. Article 15B operates to confer an additional benefit – “the additional multiple injury lump sum” – in cases where

  • a person has sustained more than one injury in one incident,

  • the cause of the injuries occurred on or after the coming into force of the original Scheme (6th April 2005), and before the coming into force of this Order,

  • an entitlement to injury benefit for more than one injury is or has been established, and

  • the relevant percentage for the purpose of calculating the amount of any guaranteed income payment in accordance with article 16 for one or more such injuries is 100 per cent.

The additional multiple injury lump sum is the difference between the total of the amount specified in table 10 in respect of each injury sustained and the amount of lump sum previously awarded (after application of the discounting rules in article 15(2)). The amount payable is subject to an overall cap (of the amount specified at level 1 in column (a) of table 10 - currently £285,000). An entitlement to injury benefit must have been established before article 15B has any application – but it does not make any difference to its application whether that entitlement is established before or after the coming into force of this Order. The calculation is performed by using the tariff in force on the day the determination of entitlement to injury benefit was originally made or on the day on which it is revised by the Secretary of State or by a Pension Appeal Tribunal, an appropriate Social Security Commissioner or a court.

Articles 20 (temporary awards), 44 (interim awards), 47 (review on discharge on medical grounds), 48 (review – exceptional circumstances) and 54 (date on which awards of benefit become payable) of the Scheme are amended so that each applies to the additional multiple injury lump sum.

Article 10 amends article 37 of the Scheme with the result that a claim is not required for an additional multiple injury lump sum award to be made: the Secretary of State will automatically consider and notify claimants of any entitlement under the new provision.

Article 15 amends Table 5 of Schedule 4 to the Scheme which sets out the tariff levels for cases of amputation by amending three entries and omitting 6 others. With the exception of the amendment to item 26 of table 5, these amendments do not affect any claim made before the coming into force of this Order.

A full regulatory impact assessment has not been produced for this instrument as no impact on the private or voluntary sectors is foreseen.

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