If you are injured at work, you can lodge a workers compensation claim and receive benefits. As an injured worker in NSW, you do not have to prove that your employer was at fault to be covered by workers compensation system. All you have to show is that your injury was caused by your employment.
Once you lodge a claim and if the insurer accept liability for your injuries, you may receive:
- Weekly wages.
- Medical expenses.
- Permanent impairment payout.
Weekly wages:
You may receive weekly payments by the workers compensation insurer to compensate you for the income you are unable to earn because of your injury.
Weekly payments are calculated based on your pre-injury average weekly earnings and are usually paid until 2.5 years, 5 years, or until you reach retirement age. How long you will receive these payments will depend on how serious your injury is and whether you have any capacity to earn an income.
If you have made a claim for weekly wages because of a work-related injury but you have been denied, one of our workers compensation lawyers can provide you legal advice to assist you with your dispute without an obligation.
Medical expenses:
The workers compensation insurer is required to pay for all your reasonable medical and related expenses resulting from your work-related injury. These expenses may include costs of your GP consultations, specialists’ reviews, major surgeries, physiotherapy, hospital expenses and rehabilitation. You may also be eligible to receive travel expenses.
Permanent impairment payout:
A claim for permanent impairment compensation can be made by injured workers who suffer permanent and ongoing disabilities as a result of their injury.
For physical injuries, you must have a permanent impairment rating of 11% or greater to be entitled to make a claim for lump sum compensation. This applies to all claims made on or after 19 June 2012. For primary psychological injuries, a permanent impairment rating of 15% or greater is required for a worker to be entitled to make a claim for lump sum compensation.
Lump sum compensation claims are usually initiated by the injured worker and the process is usually commenced once the injured worker’s condition has stabilised, this means the injured worker’s condition will not change by 3% in 12 months. A lump sum compensation can be paid to you in addition to the weekly payments and medical expenses that you may be receiving from the insurer.Injured workers are to receive only one lump sum compensation for their impairments resulting from the work-related injury. Thus, it is important that you have a workers compensation lawyer instructed on your behalf to lodge your claim for lump sum compensation. The workers compensation insurer may deny your entitlements for weekly wages, medical expenses and lump sum compensation claim at any stage of the claim. Our lawyers will run your claims and will ensure the compensation you receive is maximised and it does not effect your other entitlements, such as payment of weekly wages and medical expenses.
