War widow fights for compensation after husband's suicide amid DVA red tape

A war widow, Alison Whitfield, has accused the Department for Veterans' Affairs of pushing her to the brink as she fights for compensation after the suicide of her husband, Dave Whitfield, a former Australian Defence Force medic who served eight years, including time in Timor-Leste, and was discharged in 2004.

Dave's death in February last year followed a decades-long battle with depression. The couple, who met in 2015, appeared on Q+A two years ago where Dave spoke about the physical and mental pain he had suffered since leaving the army. "I tried to commit suicide more times than I can count - 30 plus times," he told the ABC show. A year later he was dead.

Alison says the DVA's treatment since Dave's death has been traumatic. "All he ever wanted was a letter that he could hang on the wall to say he wasn't insane," she told the Daily Mail. Days after Dave's death, the DVA wrote to inform her that his incapacity payments were being cut off three months early. "This left me with absolutely no money coming in. I couldn’t pay my rent and had to give up the unit Dave and I shared, effectively making me homeless," Alison said. Alison attempted suicide four months later. "They pushed me that far that I hopped in my car and I drove it into a barrier at 100km/h, so I would end up with Dave," she said. "I didn't have a house as I couldn't pay the rent because they didn't give me what I was entitled to." Three months ago, Alison finally secured accommodation in a war widow's unit in New Farm, Brisbane.

The central point of contention is the conflicting advice regarding which compensation act Dave's death was accepted under. In a letter dated March 25, 2024 - just a month after he died - Alison was informed that "liability for Mr Whitfield’s death has been accepted under the MRCA (the Military Rehabilitation and Compensation Act)". If a veteran's death is accepted under MRCA, the dependent partner is entitled to a tax-free additional payment of around $185,000. But an October email stated, "there is no accepted condition under MRCA from which David passed away from and therefore no entitlement to the Additional Death Benefit".

Adam Glezer, from Consumer Champion, who is representing Alison, said the DVA's bureaucratic language and red tape ensured that most veterans and families gave up before receiving what they were entitled to. "You'd need to be a MENSA-level genius to decipher the endless subsections and convoluted clauses in their policies. I believe it's intentional - designed to wear people down so they simply give up," he said. "The DVA has blood on its hands. The torment they inflict through their bureaucratic maze has contributed to countless suicides. In Alison's case, it cost her husband his life - and drove her to attempt to take her own." Mr Glezer added that the fact she had received any entitlements was "a testament to her extraordinary resilience".

"There's a public perception that the Department of Veterans' Affairs supports our veterans. But in reality, they often push the very people they're meant to protect - and their families - to the brink, and sometimes beyond, in their fight for entitlements," he said. He also noted that the department had acknowledged in writing that her husband's death was service-related, yet had subjected her to a cruel process just to access the compensation she is entitled to.

In a statement to the ABC last year, the DVA acknowledged Dave's service and said it had given him support "over a number of years". "The death of any veteran is a tragedy and the loss of a current or former Australian Defence Force member is deeply felt by the entire Defence and veteran community," the spokesperson added. However, when asked to explain the apparently conflicting advice given to Alison, the DVA said it "does not comment on individual cases to protect client privacy". "For complex cases, DVA provides additional support through the complex case assistance model to support veterans and families," a department spokesperson added. "Veterans and families are encouraged to engage with the Department through that support mechanism."