Jim O'Keeffe
Question:14 Mr. J. O'Keeffe asked the Minister for Defence the cost to date of Army deafness claims; and the estimated projected cost of outstanding claims. [13807/02]
Other Questions. - Hearing Impairment Claims.
Up to 31 May 2002 the cost of Army hearing loss claims amounted to €243.5 million. A sum of €165.2 million was paid in court awards-settlements and €78.3 million in legal costs.
The projected cost of settling outstanding claims is in the region of €80 million.
This has been a very expensive lesson for the State. Will the Minister inform the House if current procedures and safety regulations are adequate to ensure no recurrence of such injuries?
Safety procedures in the Defence Forces have been considerably upgraded in the past ten years. There has not been any successful claims which I am aware of for hearing compensation from those recruited since that time.
It is wrong to think all the claims involved were associated with the operation of poor safety procedures. Nonetheless, mistakes were made. The Deputy can be assured that the procedures now in place, the equipment available and the expertise in management in dealing with such matters will ensure we are not faced with such problems in the future.
Have any new cases been identified?
A total of 782 cases were received in 2000; 610 were received in 2001 and 186 have been received so far this year. Those figures include serving and retired personnel.