Veterans' Entitlements Act 1986

Subject to this section and section 9A, for the purposes of this Act, the death of a veteran shall be taken to have been war‑caused if:

the death of the veteran resulted from an occurrence that happened while the veteran was rendering operational service;

the death of the veteran arose out of, or was attributable to, any eligible war service rendered by the veteran;

the death of the veteran resulted from an accident that occurred while the veteran was travelling, while rendering eligible war service but otherwise than in the course of duty, on a journey to a place for the purpose of performing duty or away from a place of duty upon having ceased to perform duty;

in the opinion of the Commission, the death of the veteran was due to an accident that would not have occurred, or to a disease that would not have been contracted, but for his or her having rendered eligible war service or but for changes in the veteran’s environment consequent upon his or her having rendered eligible war service; or

the injury or disease from which the veteran died:

was suffered or contracted while the veteran was rendering eligible war service, but did not arise out of that service; or

was suffered or contracted before the commencement of the period, or last period, of eligible war service rendered by the veteran, but not while the veteran was rendering eligible war service;

the injury or disease from which the veteran died is an injury or disease that has been determined in accordance with section 9 to have been a war‑caused injury or a war‑caused disease, as the case may be;

The effect of paragraph (f) is that, if the veteran has died from an injury or disease that has already been determined by the Commission to be war‑caused, the death is to be taken to have been war‑caused. Accordingly the Commission is not required to relate the death to eligible war service rendered by the veteran and sections 120A and 120B do not apply.

Paragraph (1)(a), (b), (c) or (d) does not apply to the death of a veteran if the death:

resulted from the veteran’s serious default or wilful act; or

arose from:

a serious breach of discipline committed by the veteran; or

an occurrence that happened while the veteran was committing a serious breach of discipline.

Subsection (1) does not apply to the death of a veteran if the death of the veteran resulted from the serious default or wilful act of the veteran that happened after the veteran ceased, or last ceased, to render eligible war service.

Paragraph (1)(c) does not apply:

to an accident that occurred while the veteran was travelling on a journey from the veteran’s place of duty in a case where the veteran had delayed commencing the journey for a substantial time after he or she ceased to perform duty at that place (otherwise than for a reason connected with the performance of the veteran’s duties) unless, in the circumstances of the particular case, the nature of the risk of sustaining an injury, or contracting a disease, was not substantially changed, and the extent of that risk was not substantially increased, by that delay or by anything that happened during that delay;

to an accident that occurred while the veteran was travelling on a journey, or a part of a journey, by a route that was not reasonably direct having regard to the means of transport used unless:

the journey, or that part of the journey, was made by that route for a reason connected with the performance of the veteran’s duties; or

in the circumstances of the particular case, the nature of the risk of sustaining an injury, or contracting a disease, was not substantially changed, and the extent of that risk was not substantially increased, by reason that the journey, or that part of the journey, was made by that route; or

to an accident that occurred while the veteran was travelling on a part of a journey made after a substantial interruption of the journey, being an interruption made for a reason unconnected with the performance of the veteran’s duties, unless, in the circumstances of the particular case, the nature of the risk referred to in subparagraph (b)(ii) was not substantially changed, and the extent of that risk was not substantially increased, by reason of that interruption.

Paragraph (1)(e) does not apply to the death of a veteran from an injury or disease, being injury or disease that has been contributed to in a material degree by, or aggravated by, eligible war service rendered by the veteran, unless the veteran has rendered operational service or the period of the eligible war service rendered by the veteran that so contributed to the injury or disease, or by which the injury or disease was aggravated, was 6 months or longer.

Despite subsection (1), the death of a veteran is taken not to have been war‑caused if the veteran’s death is related to the veteran’s eligible war service only because:

in the case of a veteran who had not used tobacco products before 1 January 1998—the veteran used tobacco products after 31 December 1997; or

in the case of a veteran who had used tobacco products before 1 January 1998—the veteran increased his or her use of tobacco products after 31 December 1997.