Mental Health at Work

Workers’ compensation claims

Generally, an application for workers compensation must be lodged within 6 months of suffering the injury; however, the workers’ compensation insurer can waive this time frame in particular circumstances.

For example, if the injury was sustained over a period of time and you were not assessed as being unfit for work (whether partially or totally) straight away the insurer may elect to accept the application provided it is lodged within 20 business days of that assessment taking place.

Common law damages claims

There are strict time limits for pursuing a damages claim against your employer in Queensland. You must serve a compliant Notice of Claim for Damages on your employer and its workers’ compensation insurer within 3 years.

In some cases, it is simple to identify the date the 3 year time limit commences (e.g. where the injury is suffered in a single incident on a specific date), but that is not always the case. It is therefore important to obtain legal advice as soon as possible after suffering a work injury to ensure you receive time limit advice as early as possible.

There are some circumstances under which the 3 year time limit can be altered or extended; however, this can be a complex question and we recommend you seek advice

There are several ways that you can make a workers compensation claim:

• Online at Work Cover Queensland

• Over the phone on 1300 362 128 (for fatal claims or where urgent surgery is required)

• By lodging a Claim Form via fax, post, through your doctor or via WorkCover Queensland’s online platform

If your employer is self-insured you will need to contact them directly to make a claim. WorkSafe Queensland maintains a list of all self-insured employers, which you can find through this link.

If your claim has been rejected you may be able to seek a review to challenge the decision.

There are a few reasons why a claim might be rejected and it is important to seek legal advice immediately upon receiving notification from the workers’ compensation insurer that your claim has been rejected.

There are strict time frames for challenged a decision to reject a claim. Generally, you will have three (3) months from the date you were issued with a written decision to reject your claim.

The team at Southside Legal are experienced in challenging decisions to deny claims and have been successful in overturning decisions to get claims accepted and entitlement paid. This success has included successful challenging decisions to deny claims for psychological injuries on the basis of the reasonable management action exclusion (refer to our page “Mental health at work” for more information).

The Workers’ Compensation and Rehabilitation Act 2003 in combination with the Workers’ Compensation and Rehabilitation Regulation 2014 provide guidance on who is considered a first responder or eligible employee.

WorkSafe Queensland provides a helpful summary (below) confirming the people and roles that fall within the legislative definitions:

A first responder is a person who responds to life-threatening, or otherwise traumatic incidents, where time may be critical to prevent actual or potential death or injury to people, or to prevent or minimise damage to property or the environment.

First responders can work for state or local government or the private sector and include:

• police officers and police recruits

• ambulance officers

• child safety officers (authorised officers)

• corrective services officers

• youth justice staff members

• firefighters, fire services officers, members of the State Emergency Service and members of the rural fire brigade

• doctors and nurses working in emergency and trauma care; acute care; critical care; and high-dependency care

• coal miners and other miners who perform a mines rescue.

• eligible employees working in state government departments will be responsible for policing, ambulance, fire and emergency services, child safety and corrective services. For example, triple 0 operators. They will be in jobs that require them to:

• experience repeated or extreme exposure to graphic details of traumatic incidents as they attend the scene of traumatic incidents

• experience the traumatic incident as they happen

• investigate, review, or assess traumatic incidents that have happened to other people.

This depends on how long it has been since you were injured and unable to perform your role.

For the first 12 months after the injury your employer cannot dismiss you solely or mainly because you are unfit for your employment because of the injury.

If you have been injured within the last 12 months and have been dismissed you should seek legal advice as soon as possible.

Unfortunately, there is no exact timeframe. It will depend on the complexities of your claim, the nature of your injuries, your treatment and how long it takes for your injuries to stabilise.

Each case is different and the team at Southside Legal will consider the details specific to your case when discussing timeframes.

It is important to first know the details specific to your circumstances to fully advise on the benefits you will be entitled to. However, generally speaking, you may be paid an amount that is equal to a percentage of your usual weekly earnings (which decreases over time), along with payment for all reasonable medical and associated expenses.

You must satisfactorily participate in rehabilitation unless you have a reasonable excuse for not doing so. If you do not have a reasonable excuse the insurer may suspend your entitlement to compensation until you participate.

If your injury has resulted in a degree of permanent impairment you will also be entitled to lump sum compensation at the finalisation of your claim.

It is very important that you seek legal advice before accepting any lump sum compensation to ensure you do not lose the right to claim further compensation.

The benefits you are entitled to under a workers’ compensation claim are different to what you can be compensated for under a damages claim. Each claim is different and must be considered on its own facts and circumstances. In the vast majority of damages claims it will also be necessary to obtain expert medical opinion to assist in assessing the type and amount of damages you are able to claim for.