Guy Parent. (Chris Roussakis/QMI Agency File Photo)

OTTAWA — Ex-soldiers seeking disability benefits from the government face an unfair and sometimes biased process, the veterans' ombudsman said Monday.

In a new report, Guy Parent criticized Veterans Affairs Canada for keeping former armed forces members in the dark about the health and service records being used to settle their disability pension and awards claims.

The records are retrieved internally and given directly to claim adjudicators who make the decisions on those claims.

In some cases, disability benefits officers flag documents for adjudicators they see as most relevant to a specific case.

Parent argues this can bias a case even though the officers have no authority to actually rule on claims.