If you’re a veteran and have suffered an injury, medical disorder or illness as a result of serving in the military before 6th April 2005, you may be eligible to make a claim through the UK Government’s War Pension Scheme.
War Pension rates are dependent on your rank, age, injury and illness. There are a number of supplementary allowances which you may be eligible for, such as an unemployability allowance, mobility supplement, how many children you have and whether you’re a widow.
The value of payments are reviewed and set by the UK Parliament. The most up to date War Pension rates and allowances can be found on the Gov.uk website*.
If you have suffered a service related injury, illness or medical disorder after 6th April 2005, you may be eligible to make a claim through the Armed Forces Compensation Scheme, which works slightly differently.
How does the War Pension Scheme work?
If you feel you are eligible, you can start to make a claim under the War Pension Scheme on the Gov.uk website or by making a postal application.
The online application should take approximately 45 minutes to complete, but we advise that you have your supporting documents and personal information to hand before starting. This can include your GP details, information about your military service, current or historic medical treatment and any other benefits, entitlement or compensation you have already received.
To send your War Pension Scheme application by post, you will need to ask for a form through Veterans UK by calling their helpline on 0808 1914 218 or emailing veterans-uk@mod.gov.uk. Once you’ve contacted Veterans UK, they will send you an application form and pre-paid envelope.
Veterans UK and the Ministry of Defence have also provided a useful walkthrough diagram of how the War Pension Scheme claim process works.
Need further help? If you’re a Blesma Member, our team of Support Officers can offer advice and assistance with your War Pension Scheme application. We can also aid you at War Pension Tribunals and provide additional information about War Disablement Pensions, which can include the War Pensioners’ Mobility Supplement.
If you’d like assistance from your local Support Officer with making a claim, you can find their contact details on our Blesma Support Officer page.
On the other hand, if you’re not a Blesma Member but have suffered a life changing injury, either during or after your service you could be eligible for Blesma Membership.
How much can you receive through the War Pension Scheme?
If you are successful with your claim, there are two different types of compensation the War Pension Scheme awards:
- A lump sum payment is most likely to be issued if you are experiencing disablement of less than 20%.
- An ongoing pension paid weekly or monthly is likely to be issued if you are experiencing disablement of more than 20%.
War Pension Scheme age allowance
As mentioned, you can only make a War Pension Scheme claim if your military service related health incident happened before 6th April 2005. You can only make a claim if you are over the age of 65.
Age allowances are split into three groups: 65 - 69, 70 - 79, 80 and over. The older you are, the more likely you are to receive a larger weekly or monthly military pension. You can review the 2023/24 rates on the UK Parliament site*.
How to re-appeal
In some cases, you may need to supply additional documentation or arrange a medical examination with an appointed doctor to enable your claim to successfully go through.
If your claim is rejected, you will need to apply for a review. There is no time limit on re-applying. If you are a Blesma Member, our Support Officers will be able to help you with your renewed application.
*Updated 4th January, 2024