An amendment Bill will be brought to Parliament early in 2012 to clarify the workers' compensation common law insurance obligations of employers and insurers.

Amendments to the Workers’ Compensation and Injury Management Act 1981 (the Act) implemented in October 2011 inadvertently created legal uncertainty as to an employer’s common law insurance obligation for people who are deemed their workers in some circumstances.

In order to restore certainty the proposed amendments will:

• Make clear that the requirement to insure a worker for common law damages does not include a person who is the employer’s worker only because of section 175 or section 175AA of the Act (deemed employers under the Act).
  
• Preserve the indemnity in public liability policies for deemed employers from 1 October 2011 to ensure those policies respond to common law actions against deemed employers.
  
• Enable regulations to set a specified or minimum limit of indemnity for common law liabilities arising from a single event, and other standard conditions and exclusions.

To avoid any doubt about the legal status of insurance arrangements, the amendments will apply retrospectively from 1 October 2011.

Download the Workers’ Compensation - Common Law Insurance statement for more information.

For further information on the planned amendments please contact Mr Chris White, General Manager Legislation and Scheme Information at WorkCover WA on 9388 5512.