icare in the news again
Many of our clients have recently received a letter from icare informing them that their weekly Workers Compensation payments may be incorrect. This is an unsettling letter to receive.
icare has found instances where Workers Compensation Insurers have calculated weekly payments incorrectly as early as October 2012. The potential underpayments have been uncovered as part of an Independent Review Report into icare that was handed down in April 2021. Injured workers could be owed thousands, or even hundreds of thousands of dollars in arrears of payments.
If you receive this letter, it is important you obtain legal advice to determine whether you should apply for a reassessment of your weekly benefits. If an assessment takes place and icare determine you have not been underpaid, your weekly payments will not change. However, if an assessment takes place and icare determine you have been overpaid, your ongoing weekly payments could be reduced to the correct, lesser, amount.
An icare spokesperson has said “As at 30 July 2021, icare has reassessed some 8604 eligible claims from across NSW. A total of 281 workers have found to have been underpaid a total of just over $3 million in weekly benefits.” It may, literally, pay to take action.
As an injured worker you are entitled to be advised by Toby Tancred or Melissa Arndell. The Independent Review Office (IRO) can assist by providing funding for this legal advice. IRO provides funding to approved Solicitors to investigate claims, provide advice to you as an injured worker, and deal with employers and insurers on your behalf. Toby Tancred and Melissa Arndell are IRO Approved Lawyers. Toby Tancred is a Law Society Personal Injury Accredited Specialist and has been recognised by Doyle’s Guide as a Recommended Work Injury Compensation Lawyer for two years running. Doyle’s Guide has also named Toby Tancred Solicitor as a Recommended Asbestos & Dust Diseases Compensation Law Firm. Toby Tancred and his team have the experience, knowledge and ability to help all injured workers in difficult times.