The veteran's right ankle disability was initially granted service connection and a rating in March 1946. He did not appeal this decision. In February 1950, he filed an application for automobile allowance and/or adaptive equipment, which included a claim for SMC based on loss of use of one foot. The RO denied his claim due to the lack of evidence showing loss of use of one foot at that time. In August 2004, VA awarded him SMC effective from August 7, 1975, based on his earlier application. The Board found that the June 1950 denial was clearly and unmistakably erroneous due to a change in regulatory criteria.
The deciding factor: The veteran's right ankle disability met the criteria for loss of use of one foot as defined by VA regulations at the time of his initial claim, but not at the time of the June 1950 RO decision.
- Claimed conditions
- Right ankle disability
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 40%
- Decision date
- September 8, 2006
- Citation
- 0628188
Veterans Law Judge
Judge attribution: 2025 complete; earlier years partial.
This is a plain-language summary generated by AI from a public Board of Veterans’ Appeals decision. It can contain errors — always verify against the original. Look up the original decision on VA.gov (opens in a new tab) using citation 0628188.
What this means for you
A grant means the Board agreed the veteran was entitled to the benefit. Decisions like this show the kind of evidence and arguments that tend to succeed for claims like it.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Denied
The Veteran's claim for an earlier effective date of January 10, 1997, for a 10% disability rating for his right ankle disability is denied as there was no CUE in the previous decisions.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the case due to insufficient evidence regarding whether the Veteran's right ankle disability is related to his service. The VA examiner must provide an opinion on this matter.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has dismissed the appeals to reduce disability ratings for bilateral hearing loss and right ankle disabilities. The case is REMANDED for a VA examination regarding the service connection claim for an acquired psychiatric disorder, including PTSD.
- Granted
The Veteran's right ankle disability is granted a 20 percent rating, but no higher. The claim for a compensable rating for Pseudofolliculitis barbae (PFB) is denied.
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