Greece’s highest administrative court has ruled that disability pensions or state-covered medical costs cannot legally be used to reduce compensation for emotional or moral damages, a decision that could affect dozens of pending claims against the state.
The seven-member panel of the Council of State’s first section, in ruling 1030/2026, said disability pensions and hospital coverage serve a different purpose than compensation for pain and suffering and should not be deducted from it. The dispute took 24 years to resolve.
The case stemmed from a December 7, 2002, accident at the Kotroni Naval Helicopter Base, where a 20-year-old sailor performing military service was electrocuted while responding to an urgent order to fix an electrical fault. He had not yet put on protective gear. He lost his right arm 10 days later, and also required more surgeries.
He was later given a 90% disability pension after officials found the injury occurred during military duty. Several Navy personnel were convicted of negligence.
The sailor sued the state for over €2.6 million; courts awarded about €294,000. The state argued the pension should offset that sum, but the court disagreed, citing Civil Code Article 932’s separate purpose of moral consolation.
