Lodge a dispute
The first step towards resolving your dispute is to complete and lodge the appropriate application through the Commission’s online portal.
Our role
The Personal Injury Commission resolves disputes that arise out of injuries suffered in employment or in a motor vehicle accident. When you suffer an injury in such circumstances, an insurer may tell you that you do not have an entitlement to compensation. This is called a dispute, and the Commission’s role is to resolve those disputes. To do this, we work with all parties throughout the process to explore ways of resolving a dispute. When the parties are not able to reach their own resolution, an expert member of the Commission will decide the dispute.
The Commission is divided into two divisions – the workers compensation division and the motor accidents division.
Federal proceedings
The Personal Injury Commission cannot exercise federal jurisdiction. This means claims about:
- damages under the Motor Accidents Compensation Act 1999, or
- statutory benefits or damages under the Motor Accident Injuries Act 2017, or
- damages under the Motor Accidents Injuries Act 2017
- compensation or work injury damages under the Workplace Injury Management and Workers Compensation Act 1998,
that involve the exercise of federal jurisdiction are dealt with differently.
Part 3 Division 3.2 of the Personal Injury Commission Act sets out the way in which matters that involve an exercise of federal jurisdiction are to be determined.
Some examples of disputes to which this Division may apply include matters involving:
- a resident of NSW and a state-owned interstate insurer,
- an interstate resident and the Nominal Defendant,
Applications with respect to such a claim should first be made to the President or the Commission. An application for leave may subsequently be made to the District Court. The Court may grant leave for the application to be made to the Court only if it is satisfied that –
- an application was first made to the President or the Commission, and
- the determination of the matter by the usual decision maker would involve the exercise of federal jurisdiction, and
- the usual decision maker otherwise have had jurisdiction enabling the decision maker to determine the application.
If the Court grants leave it may then determine the manner by which the proceedings (‘substituted proceedings’) are to be conducted (see sections 27 & 28 of the Act).
The Personal Injury Commission Regulation 2020 under Part 3 sets out the fees and costs payable in connection with 'substituted proceedings'.
Can you lodge a dispute?
Before you can lodge a dispute with us, you must have first submitted a claim for compensation. For more information on making a claim for workers compensation or following a motor accident, visit the State Insurance Regulatory Authority (SIRA) website.
You may also ask your insurer to review their decision before lodging a dispute with the Commission.
How to lodge a dispute
The first step towards resolving your dispute is to complete and lodge the appropriate application through the Commission’s online portal. If you need assistance with lodging an application, please contact us. We cannot provide legal advice, but will be able to assist with the procedural aspects of your application. If you are legally represented, your lawyer will lodge the application on your behalf.
The process
Generally, we’ll register your application and provide copies to you (or your legal representative) to send to the insurer and other appropriate parties.
After you send a copy of your application to the insurer, they will lodge a reply to the application with the Commission. We usually register the reply and return sealed copies to the insurer. The insurer is required to send a copy to you (or your legal representative).
All information must be lodged with the application and reply
The Commission requires all relevant information that a party intends to rely on to be lodged with the application or reply.
You can request the insurer provide you with any information they have that may be relevant to your dispute, for example, reports from treating doctors and wages information. The employer also can request information they feel may be relevant to your dispute, for example, clinical notes from treating doctors.
It may not be possible to include further information later in the dispute resolution process, so it is best to wait until you have all relevant information before you lodge an application. The respondent will also need to include all relevant material with their reply. This early exchange of information assists with discussions to help resolve the dispute