The possibility to claim compensation as a consequence of industrial deafness sustained from long-term exposure to excessive levels of noise in the workplace or as a result of sudden and traumatic acoustic shock are well known. However, in addition to compensation sought for actual hearing damage, reduced earning capacity and medical expenses, the affect of the slow deterioration in hearing ability upon family and social life is taken into account.

According to latest 2010 research of over 1,000 respondents suffering hearing impairment, over 33 per cent stated that communication problems within the home causing misunderstanding and arguments with more than 5 per cent claiming that their hearing loss was leading to a severe relationship breakdown.

A degree of reluctance to accept that one may be suffering from noise induced hearing loss may simply be because of a lack of awareness – until the need to ask for conversations to be repeated or being told to turn the TV volume down becomes so acute it can no longer be ignored. Experiencing the ringing or low buzzing sound of tinnitus, which could also be caused by long-term exposure to excessive noise levels damaging the hearing nerve, are most often taken as a first warning sign of possible hearing damage.

Often the realisation can come as a real shock for those with undiagnosed deafness causes or the middle aged who begin to experience hearing loss. The loss of hearing in later years, which can be attributed to persistent noise exposure during the former working life, can be an upsetting experience, especially if a hearing aid has to be worn, often associated with the irrational fear of being stigmatised as ‘disabled’.

The injurious psychological and emotional effects that a diminishing hearing ability can have on the sufferer’s personal life and wider social capacity is readily taken into consideration when a hearing damage claim is undertaken.