6.2.2.3 Liability determination
Follow these steps to determine the worker's entitlement to receive compensation for the injury claimed.
| Step | Agent action |
|---|---|
| Assess claim |
The Agent must:
See: Create notice of entitlement for details on what is to be notified to the worker when determining liability and entitlement. Note 1: If, due to exceptional reasons, the Agent cannot determine liability within this timeframe, they can request an extension of time from WorkSafe. This request must be made to the Impairment Benefit Team by the 110th calendar day after the Agent received date, detailing why an exceptional case exists. Note 2: The letter to the worker should describe the accepted and/or rejected injuries as precisely as possible and make reference to the treating medical reports. |
| Liability accepted: all injuries |
If liability is accepted for all injuries, arrange for the worker to be independently medically examined. This examination must be arranged before 120 days. Circumstances may allow for the suspension of post 18/11/04 IB Claims. If the claim is to be suspended, an examination should not be arranged until the suspension is removed. See: Suspend impairment process due to instability and/or insufficient medical information. |
| Liability rejected: all injuries | If liability is rejected for all injuries, must advise the worker in writing of the decision. The worker has 60 days to apply to conciliation. |
| Liability: combination of accepted and rejected |
If liability is accepted for some injuries and rejected for others, advise the worker in writing of the decisions. See: Create notice of entitlement for details on what is to be notified to the worker when determining liability and entitlement. Proceed to have the worker examined for those injuries that have been accepted or undetermined. When liability cannot be determined based upon information on file an independent medical examination may be required. See: Independent impairment assessment for details surrounding a ‘dual purpose’ assessment. The worker has 60 days to apply to conciliation for those injuries that have been rejected. |
| Assess common law potential |
When determining liability, the IB Specialist should review the claim for common law potential. If common law potential is identified, the claim must be referred to the appropriate suitably qualified person (technical). See: Common Law |
| Multiple injuries |
If a worker has more than one injury arising out of the same work-related incident, all those injuries must be assessed at the one time. After a claim for impairment benefits has been resolved, a worker cannot make a further claim for injuries resulting from the same circumstance or incident identified in the resolved IB claim. 
|
