The Board denied the Veteran's claim for a total disability evaluation based upon individual unemployability due to service-connected disabilities, finding that his service-connected conditions did not prevent him from securing and following a substantially gainful occupation.
The deciding factor: The evidence showed that the Veteran's service-connected cold injury residuals, hearing loss, and tinnitus did not render him unable to secure or follow a substantially gainful occupation, as he had previously worked as a truck driver for 16 years before retiring in 2009 due to workplace stress.
- Claimed conditions
- Cold injury residuals (upper and lower extremities), Hearing loss, Tinnitus
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 17, 2024
- Citation
- 24002391
What this means for you
A denial is a starting point, not the end of the road. You can see why this claim fell short — and, if you are still inside the one-year window, the appeal lanes that may remain open to you.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus, finding that the Veteran's conditions are related to in-service noise exposure.
- Partly granted
The Board granted an effective date of May 17, 2019, for a 70 percent disability rating for PTSD but denied earlier effective dates for service connection for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus.
- Partly granted
The Board granted readjudication of previously denied claims for service connection for PTSD and COPD, while remanding other issues including entitlement to service connection for an eye disorder, hypertension, tinnitus, a compensable rating for bilateral hearing loss, TDIU, and an initial rating for PTSD.
- Dismissed
The Board dismissed the Veteran's appeals for service connection for bilateral hearing loss disability and tinnitus due to a lack of jurisdiction.
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