A medically retired Army veteran has filed a lawsuit alleging 3M Combat Arms Earplugs didn’t protect his ears, causing him to develop tinnitus and hearing loss.

Plaintiff Navin A. alleges he joined the U.S. Army in 2004 when he was 25 years old. He entered at the rank of Captain after his reserve commission in medical school.

Before joining the Army, he says he never had tinnitus or trouble hearing.

During the time he was in the service, the 3M Combat Arms Earplugs were standard issue equipment, according to the complaint. He alleges that he used the earplugs from 2004 and 2010 during his time stationed in Sinai, Egypt and then Baghdad, Iraq. Navin claims he “was exposed to a number of explosions, small arms and artillery fire while at base along with helicopter landing 50-100 meters” from his living quarters in Baghdad.

Navin insists he always wore the earplugs in accordance with the manufacturer’s instructions, which allegedly did not include instructions to fold back the flanges of the earplug opposite of the side he had inserted into his ear canal.

He was medically retired from the U.S. Army on Sept. 11, 2015 with the rank of Major. Navin alleges since using the Combat Arms Earplugs, he has been diagnosed with tinnitus and hearing loss. As a result, he says he also suffers from mood swings, impaired concentration, irritability, and problems sleeping.

3M Combat Arms Earplugs Settlement with Government

Last summer, 3M Company reportedly agreed to pay a $9.1 million settlement regarding allegations it knew its military earplugs were not adequately protecting the ears of service members. The company has admitted no liability. The lawsuit was filed under the whistleblower portion of the False Claims Act that enables anyone with information regarding fraud, waste or abuse of government money to file a complaint with the U.S. Attorney’s office. Under the False Claims Act, the U.S. government can become a plaintiff too, and did so in this case.

According to a report by the Military Times, the earplugs were originally made by a company called Aearo Technologies Inc. back in the 1990s. Aearo allegedly knew the earplugs were too short to stay securely in the ears of service members as far back as the year 2000, but never corrected the design flaw or brought the issue to anyone’s attention.

The earplugs purportedly loosened imperceptibly while in the service member’s ear, and this loosening could allow damaging noises to reach the delicate parts of the inner ear.

According to an article at Tribunebyte.com, the allegations against Aearo and 3M began when a competitor, Moldex-Metric Inc., suggested 3M allegedly falsified testing data. The 3M military earplugs purportedly tested inadequate at protecting ears from a 10.9-decibel noise.

According to Navin’s lawsuit, his own military career and future employment opportunities will suffer the rest of his life due to damage caused by the allegedly defective 3M earplugs, causing him economic loss. He also alleges his hearing loss injuries are apt to worsen over time, which will affect his ability to fully enjoy many life activities.

The 3M Combat Arms Earplugs Lawsuit is Navin A. v. 3M Company, et al., Case No. 2:19-cv-04241-NGG-RLM in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York.