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Graham Hopps, 45, blamed his former employer, Mott Macdonald Ltd, and the Ministry of Defence (MoD) for not supplying armoured vehicles to transport men working on contracts in Iraq.

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The father of two was injured in October 2003 when the soft-skinned Land Rover provided by the army came under attack as it was travelling on a road known as "Bomb Alley".

Another passenger sustained a fatal head wound and Mr Hopps's dominant right arm and shoulder were shattered, leaving him with little movement, as well as hearing loss and tinnitus.

Mr Hopps, who claimed that the incident deprived him of the opportunity of pursuing a lucrative overseas career, is now limited to work as a manager in an office-based environment.

His counsel, Nigel Wilkinson QC, told Mr Justice Christopher Clarke that the MoD should have recognised that the existing arrangements of soft-skinned vehicles with top-up cover were not proper protection for those travelling in Iraq at that time.

And, he said Mott Macdonald should have ordered an investigation into the security situation and assessed it when the firm took on its contractual obligations.

But the judge said he found it impossible to conclude that the likelihood was that if Mr Hopps had been in an armoured vehicle he would probably not have suffered the injury that he did or that his injuries would have been less serious.

Dismissing Mr Hopps's case, he said: "The fact that I have done so in no way reduces the great credit due to him for the contribution which, at much personal cost, he has made to improving the lot of the Iraqi people."

Mr Hopps was not at London's High Court for the ruling.