War Pensions
(asked on 3rd March 2025) - View Source
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 24 February 2025 to Question 31001 on Veterans: War Pensions, what the average acceptance rate is for applications made by (a) British nuclear test and (b) other veterans to the War Pension Scheme.
The War Pensions Computer System has no facility to uniquely identify those who participated in the nuclear tests. The paper claim file may include a copy of the Nuclear Test Veterans (NTV) Priority Claim Request or additional information on whether the claimant was involved in nuclear testing, however this information is not always present.
To accurately identify the number of NTVs who applied for, and received compensation would involve a manual interrogation of all War Pension files and could only be provided at disproportionate cost.
The average outcome rates for cleared first claims under the War Pension Scheme for the past ten years can be found in the table below:
Outcome rates of cleared First Claims1 under the War Pension Scheme by financial year, percentages2.
1 April 2014 – 31 March 2024
Claim Type | 2014/15 | 2015/16 | 2016/17 | 2017/18 | 2018/19 | 2019/20 | 2020/21 | 2021/22 | 2022/23 | 2023/24 |
Successful3 | 74% | 75% | 74% | 75% | 76% | 73% | 75% | 71% | 72% | 67% |
Awarded 0% | 17% | 17% | 17% | 16% | 16% | 16% | 14% | 18% | 17% | 21% |
Rejected | 8% | 8% | 9% | 9% | 9% | 11% | 11% | 11% | 12% | 12% |
Sources: War Pensions Computer System (WPCS)
- Please note, veterans who were rejected may have subsequently appealed the decision or made a further second claim which may have resulted in an awarded a War Pension.
- The sum of the % subtotals may not sum to 100% due to rounding.
- Includes those awarded a gratuity payment (at 1 to 19%) and a war pension (at 20 to 100%) and those with an unknown disablement percentage.