The son of a late Normandy veteran, who never claimed a penny in compensation for almost 40 years, said he has been left feeling 'appalled' by the Ministry of Defence (MoD) after it demanded his 91-year-old mother pay back around £60 from his war pension following his death.
David Edwards died in November 2020 at the age of 95, more than 75 years after fighting to liberate France at D-Day in 1944.
As a soldier with the 2nd Battalion Monmouthshire Regiment, 53rd Welsh Division, Mr Edwards was shot in the leg in 1944, but returned to the frontline to fight through into the Netherlands and Germany.
Normandy veteran David Edwards, pictured with his wife Diane before his death aged 95 last November, never claimed a penny of compensation for almost 40 years
Diane was shocked to receive a demand from the Ministry of Defence for £61.17 to be paid back
Last month his 91-year-old widow Diane, from Abergavenny, Wales, received a letter from the MoD asking for £61.17 of her late husband's war pension to be paid back.
He was paid a pension every 24th of the month, but because he had died on the 17 November last year there had been an 'overpayment'.
The war hero's son Chris, 63, a retired social care worker, says he is 'appalled' by the way his father's pension money was handled, and the letter sent to his mother.
David served as a soldier with the 2nd Battalion Monmoutshire Regiment, 53rd Welsh Division
The veteran was shot in the leg in 1944 but returned to fight into the Netherlands and Germany
He said: 'I don't think the letter should have been sent. It's so petty, that amount of money is not going to change the state of this country.
'Why not take it from criminal payments, from those who have had to pay a fine through the court system or something? Not from someone who fought for their country.
'I'm also annoyed that they sent a letter like that to my 91-year-old mother, who is of the generation who reads that money is owed and instantly worries that the bailiffs will turn up.
'My mum has written out the cheque for the money, but I'm holding onto it for now to see if they will contact my mum and say not to worry.
'We've been in touch with the MoD and they are looking into it at the moment.'
Chris, from Aberthaw, South Wales, is also calling for other veterans, like his father, to be aware that they may be entitled to a war pension that has not been paid to them.
Chris said that his father only found out he was entitled to his
