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A Royal Marine badly wounded in Afghanistan said today Prince Harry was backing him in his battle for better compensation for injured troops.
Ben McBean, 22, lost his left arm and right leg in a roadside blast 18 months ago and met Harry as he was being airlifted home.
He was initially awarded £161,500 for his wounds, which also included head and groin injuries, and this was later increased to £281,150. He has now put in eight new compensation claims which could raise his payout towards the £570,000 maximum.
“I am trying to get what I deserve,” he said outside a tribunal in his home city of Plymouth today. “We are not asking for loads of money, but we do need financial help. I am trying to fight for all the other lads.”
After being injured last year, Marine McBean was transported home on the same plane as Harry. The prince, who had completed his own tour of duty in Afghanistan, said he was “humbled” by his bravery.
The soldier said he has received support from the prince during his rehabilitation, adding: “He often writes me a note of support, he promised to buy me a pint and he bought me a whole crate of beer.” He said Harry had promised him a drink if he managed to get up a climbing wall and rewarded him with a crate of Stella Artois when he managed it, adding: “He's supporting me, everyone is.”
Defence Secretary Bob Ainsworth has ordered that a review of the military compensation scheme be speeded up after public anger over a legal challenge by the Ministry of Defence which sought to limit some payments.
Marine McBean said he was appealing against an award given to him in February for head injuries which have left him with memory loss and flashbacks.
He is also challenging a decision by the MoD to reject claims for hearing loss in one ear, for MRSA, for groin injuries and for body shakes and lower back pain. The tribunal heard that Marine McBean will also be making a further claim in respect of groin injuries and insomnia.
His stepfather James Cockburn has described the compensation payments to service personnel as “a joke”.
An MoD spokesman said the most seriously injured personnel are given an up-front, lump-sum payment and also receive a tax-free, index-linked monthly Guaranteed Income Payment for life. He said: “Over the course of a lifetime, the GIP typically exceeds the amount given in the lump sum.”
The tribunal today was adjourned because Marine McBean is still suffering new medical problems caused by his injuries which are being assessed.
He has remained in the Royal Marines and is currently on leave from his current administrative job at the Adventure Training centre at the HMS Drake shore base in Plymouth.
He said today: “I am still in the Royal Marines but I cannot do the job I joined up to do. If I leave, I can't go into a normal job and the injuries are going to be with me for the rest of my life. I am 22 and I could live to be 90, and houses, cars are going to have to be adapted.
“With my injuries I can't do a lot other than be a storeman, but it's not what I really want. I have signed up for an expedition to Everest in October although I still need two or three more operations.”
