In 2012 amendments were made to the New South Wales Workers Compensation Act 1987 (‘the Act'). These changes mean that an injured worker who was in receipt of weekly benefits (their weekly wages) since 1 October 2012, has no entitlement to weekly payments of workers compensation after an aggregate period of 260 weeks, or 5 years.
This amendment is under s39 of the Act and is referred to as the ‘260 Week Rule' and impacts significantly on workers compensation benefits for injured workers.
How does the 260 week rule work?
Your weekly payment start date depends on when you were injured and when you made a claim.
For a claim made prior to 1 October 2012 (referred to as an ‘existing claim'), your 260 week count commences 1 January 2013. For claims made on or after 1 October 2012, your 260 week count commences on the first day of incapacity.
