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ARTICLE · 06 APRIL 2019

Journey claims and compensation — do not stop believin

Carroll & O'Dea
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Not all accident injuries on the journey to and from work need necessarily be brought as "journey injury claims".

AustraliaEmployment and HR
Diana Farah
Diana Farah
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Key takeaways:

  • Injuries received "on the journey" to and from work (journey claims) have been mostly non-compensable since
  • Section 10(3A) of the Workers Compensation Act 1987 (NSW) requires there to be a "real and substantial connection" between the employment and the accident or incident out of which the injury
  • The settled authority now gives a reasonable number of circumstances that will satisfy the "real and substantial connection"
  • A recent case on appeal extended the scope of s 10(3A), and demonstrated that not all injuries suffered on a journey should be brought as "journey claims".1

Overview — a "real and substantial connection"

Amendments to journey claims provisions were introduced in 2012 as part of restrictive legislative reform of the Workers Compensation Act.

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