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ACCIDENT COMPENSATION ACT 1985 - SECT 125A Liability to pay compensation—on or after 4 p.m. on 30 June 1993

ACCIDENT COMPENSATION ACT 1985 - SECT 125A

Liability to pay compensation—on or after 4 p.m. on 30 June 1993

    (1)     This section applies to the liability to pay compensation in respect of an injury arising out of or in the course of any employment on or after 4 p.m. on 30 June 1993.

    (2)     Where a worker or a worker's dependants are entitled to compensation in respect of an injury arising out of or in the course of any employment on or after 4 p.m. on 30 June 1993, the liability to pay compensation is to be assumed in all cases by the worker's employer.

    (3)     A WorkCover insurance policy under the Accident Compensation (WorkCover Insurance) Act 1993 in respect of an employer's liability under subsection (2) is subject to an employer's excess in respect of each claim equal to—

S. 125A(3)(a) amended by No. 107/1997

s. 30(11)(v).

        (a)     in the case of weekly payments in respect of a worker who has no current work capacity or has a current work capacity, being a full-time worker, the first 10 days of the period of incapacity resulting from the relevant injury; and

S. 125A(3)(b) amended by No. 107/1997

s. 30(11)(v).

        (b)     a proportion of the weekly payments in respect of a worker who has no current work capacity or has a current work capacity who is not a full-time worker with that employer for the first 10 days of the period of incapacity resulting from the relevant injury; and

S. 125A(3)(c) amended by Nos 7/1996 s. 49(j), 102/2004 s. 40(c), 80/2010 s. 83(b), 67/2013 s. 633(b).

        (c)     payment of the first $642 of the reasonable costs referred to in section 99(1)(a) in relation to the relevant injury.

S. 125A(3A) inserted by No. 50/1994

s. 56, amended by No. 74/2000 s. 3(Sch. 1 item 1.4).

    (3A)     A payment or payments made by an employer to a worker to discharge the employer's liability under the employer's excess does not prejudice the determination of the liability of the employer above the employer's excess.

S. 125A(3B) inserted by No. 80/2010 s. 72, amended by No. 67/2013 s. 637(3).

    (3B)     If the Authority has set aside its decision to accept a claim for compensation against a claimed employer under section 84(1)(b) of the Workplace Injury Rehabilitation and Compensation Act 2013 , the claimed employer

        (a)     is not liable for any excess under subsection (3); and

        (b)     may request a reimbursement of the excess from the Authority.

    (4)     The proportion for the purposes of subsection (3)(b) is the number of hours per week which the worker works for the employer as a proportion of the total number of hours per week which the worker works for all employers.

    (5)     In subsection (3), a reference to a relevant injury in relation to a worker does not include a reference to a recurrence of any pre-existing injury or disease in respect of which the worker is entitled to compensation under this Act where the worker's employment was a significant contributing factor to that recurrence.

    (6)     Subject to guidelines issued by the Authority and in accordance with the premiums order, an employer may elect to increase, reduce or eliminate the excess under subsection (3) by paying an adjusted premium under the employer's WorkCover insurance policy under the  Accident Compensation (WorkCover Insurance) Act 1993 .

    (7)     The premiums order made under section 15 of the  Accident Compensation (WorkCover Insurance) Act 1993 may specify different rates or levels of premium for the purposes of this section.

S. 125A(8) amended by Nos 85/1995 s. 9(b), 67/2013 s. 637(4) (as amended by No. 44/2014 s. 24(31)).

    (8)     Subsection (3) does not apply to the liability to pay compensation in respect of an injury to a student worker.

    (9)     Subsection (3) does not apply to the liability to pay compensation in respect of an injury—

        (a)     resulting from a transport accident within the meaning of the Transport Accident Act   1986 ; and

        (b)     deemed to have arisen out of or in the course of any employment by reason of section 83(1)(a) or 83(1)(c).

S. 125A(9A) inserted by No. 5/2021 s. 37.

    (9A)     Subsection (3)(c) does not apply in the case of a claim in respect of a mental injury that entitles the worker to provisional payments under Division 2BA in relation to that mental injury.

    (10)     For the purposes of subsection (3), in calculating the first 10 days of the period of incapacity resulting from the relevant injury—

        (a)     the day on which the incapacity commenced must be included; and

        (b)     any day on which the worker would not have worked if he or she had not suffered the injury must be excluded.

S. 125B inserted by No. 50/1993

s. 75(2).