Accident insurance
Accident insurance helps protect your workers if they’re injured or become ill because of their work. In Queensland, all employers must hold this insurance so workers can get the support they need quickly and fairly.
Support for when life gets tough
When life gets hard – whether with financial stress, health concerns or personal struggles – there’s help and support available.
Taking out a policy with us
If you employ workers in Queensland, you must have workers’ compensation insurance. In most cases, this means you’ll need to take out an accident insurance policy with us.
What your policy covers
Your accident insurance policy protects you from unexpected costs if one of your workers is injured or becomes ill because of their work.
It covers both statutory claims and common law damages claims.
Statutory claims
This is the most common type of claim, where a worker can claim for part of their wages and reasonable treatment costs while they recover.
These are ‘no-fault’ claims. Most of the time, the worker just needs to show that their injury happened because of work.
Statutory claim costs may include:
- lost wages
- medical costs (like GP visits, medication and x-rays)
- public or private hospital costs
- rehabilitation (like physiotherapy or return-to-work support)
- travel costs
- a lump sum payment for permanent impairment
- death benefits and funeral costs.
Most of the time, you won’t need to pay any claim costs. An employer excess will apply if a worker needs time off work and their claim is accepted.
Common law claims
This type of claim is when a worker sues you for damages if they believe you didn’t take reasonable care to keep them safe.
We’ll consider whether the worker’s actions contributed to their injury.
A worker can choose to make a common law claim if they’ve had a permanent impairment assessment.
Your accident insurance policy covers you for the full cost of any common law claim, which can include your worker’s:
- past and future loss of income
- medical, hospital and rehabilitation costs
- pain and suffering.
Your worker will usually be paid through a settlement that covers these amounts.
Your policy also covers your legal costs.
Who your policy covers
Your policy covers all workers directly employed by your business.
When you apply for a policy, you need to tell us the wages information of all your workers and what your business does.
Find out more about who counts as worker.
What workers are covered for
Types of injuries
Your policy covers a wide range of work-related injuries or illnesses, including:
- physical injuries (like cuts, fractures, burns or strains)
- mental injuries
- conditions that happen over time (like industrial deafness)
- latent-onset conditions (like silicosis)
- aggravation of a pre-existing condition
- death from an injury or disease.
When and where an injury can happen
A worker may be covered if they’re injured:
- at work
- travelling to or from work
- during a break
- while working interstate or overseas
- while working from home.
In most cases, workers will only be covered if their employment is a significant contributing factor to their injury.
We look the facts of each claim before making a decision.
If you’re unsure, call us. We’re here to help.
Employer claims excess
If one of your workers makes a claim, you may need to pay an excess.
We’ll tell you if you need to pay an excess, as well as:
- how much to pay
- when to pay.
Find out how we calculate your claims excess.
Setting up your accident insurance policy
It only takes 5-15 minutes to set up your policy.
You can apply online or over the phone.
Any authorised person can do this, such as:
- a company director
- a finance officer
- your partner (if you’re a sole trader).
Information you’ll need
- the date your workers will start working
- wages from today to the end of the current financial year
- a short description of your primary business activity (so we can work out your WorkCover Industry Classification)
- your Australian Business Number (ABN) if you have one
- your Australian Company Number (ACN) if you have one
- GST status and certificate (if applicable)
- your workplace details, including your business or trading name and physical address.
If your workers are paid through a trust, we’ll need the trustee’s information too.
Calculating your premium
We calculate your premium based on several factors.
Learn how we calculate your premium.
Certificate of currency
Your certificate of currency shows that you hold a current WorkCover Queensland accident insurance policy.
It lists:
- your business entity name
- ABN/ACN (if you have them)
- your period of insurance.
You can download it anytime through WorkCover Connect. You can also call us, and we’ll send you a copy.
We can’t give you anyone else’s information. If you need another employer’s certificate of currency, please get it from them directly.
Renewing your policy
You must declare your wages and renew your policy each year.
Find out key dates and what you need to do.
Cancelling your policy
If you stop employing workers in Queensland, you can cancel your policy through WorkCover Connect or by calling us.
You’ll need:
- the date you last employed a worker
- your actual wages for that financial year.
A minimum premium applies to all policies, even if you no longer employ workers. This is $200 per year, or $50 per quarter if you cancel mid-year.
Last updated