Insurance no assurance of payment

An injured British soldier who was invited to parade the Carling Cup at Wembley has been told it could cost him his £25,000 insurance payout. Private Dave Tatlock who was told he would never walk again after being seriously hurt in Afghanistan bravely hobbled onto the pitch in February.

The soldier, from 2 Para, was seen carrying the trophy in front of thousands of fans and TV viewers before the final between Manchester United and Aston Villa.

The following day the insurance firm handling his injury compensation claim blocked the payout and said his claim was being "reviewed".

Pte Tatlock had taken out £56-a-month private cover with Abacus, which specialises in Armed Forces insurance, before being deployed to Afghanistan.

"Some jobsworth somewhere has seen me walk out on to the pitch," he said. "I don't know why they have tried to do it... words cannot express how angry I am."

Note the man in civvies carrying the Para's walking stick. Perhaps we should find the jobsworth and have his legs broken. No, just a joke, honest...