Loss of earnings benefits

Transcription

1 Loss of earnings benefits Current from 1 July 2014

2 About loss of earnings benefits The TAC can pay you loss of earnings benefits while you are unable to return to work due to your accident injuries. Loss of earnings benefits is a temporary income support while you recover enough to return to work. The TAC follows legislation called the Transport Accident Act 1986 when calculating your loss of earnings benefits. This legislation sets out who is eligible for loss of earnings benefits and how much and when the TAC can pay. You have an important role to play while you receive loss of earnings benefits from the TAC. This includes keeping in touch with your employer and talking to your doctor about your options for returning to work. For more information about what you need to do, refer to the Returning to Work section on page 4 or contact the TAC on and ask for a copy of the booklet Returning to Work.

3 If you are receiving Centrelink benefits It is the TAC s responsibility to pay you loss of earnings benefits if you cannot work due to you transport accident injuries. If you are receiving or have applied for Centrelink benefits, you must contact them within 14 days and advise them of your change in circumstances. Who can claim loss of earnings benefits? You can claim loss of earnings benefits if: You have an accepted TAC claim You are 15 years or older You were working full-time, part-time or casually before the accident, and Your accident-related injuries prevent you from returning to work and you have certificates of capacity to support this. You may still be entitled to loss of earnings benefits if you were unemployed at the time of your accident. Please contact the TAC on for more information. Self-employed people If you were self-employed before the accident, TAC staff will assess your entitlement to loss of earnings benefits. They usually assess your earnings by reviewing your share of the net profit of your business for three years before the accident. To find out specific information relevant to your circumstances and what you need to do to claim loss of earnings benefits, refer to the booklet TAC loss of earnings benefits for self-employed people. This booklet is available by calling the TAC on How the TAC calculates loss of earnings benefits The TAC calculates the loss of earnings benefits of wage or salary earners by looking at their earnings before the accident. If before the accident you were: An employee the TAC takes an average of your weekly earnings for the 12 month period before your accident. A seasonal or casual worker the TAC will work out your average income by looking at what you earned in the 12 months before your accident. Please note that the TAC cannot, by law, include earnings from rent or dividends as part of your income. All wage or salary earners need to provide specific information to the TAC. Please refer to the checklist on page 3. 1

4 How the TAC pays loss of earnings benefits How much the TAC can pay Once the TAC has worked out your income, we follow a formula prescribed by the Transport Accident Act 1986 that sets out how much the TAC can pay. In most cases, the TAC pays 80% of your income, to a maximum of $1,250. The following table is a guide to how the TAC works out your rate. The amounts listed below are based on weekly gross income. A If your income is below $612, you will be paid the full amount of your income. B If 80% of your income falls below $612*, you will be paid $612. C If 80% of your income falls between $612 and $1,250, you will be paid 80% of your income. D If 80% of your income is greater than $1,250, you will be paid $1,250. * $612 applies to you if you have no dependants. If you have one dependant, your rate is $785. For each additional dependant add $55. Dependants include anyone who is reliant on you for financial support. The TAC can only pay you the dependant rate if it is less than 100% of your weekly income. The dollar amounts listed are for the period 1 July 2014 to 30 June These amounts are indexed each financial year. The TAC will deduct tax from your loss of earnings benefits. If you have a HELP debt, the TAC will also deduct the appropriate HELP payment. If you must pay family maintenance, the TAC may deduct an amount designated by the Child Support Agency. The TAC pays loss of earnings benefits on a fortnightly basis into your nominated bank account. You will be sent a Pay As You Go (PAYG) summary at the end of the financial year to include in your tax return. Payments start after the first five working days The TAC, by law, cannot ordinarily pay loss of earnings benefits for the first five working days after your accident. However, there may be exceptions in very special cases, if you can prove severe financial hardship. For further information, please call the TAC on Certificate of capacity required The TAC can pay you loss of earnings benefits when we have a certificate of capacity from your doctor that states your capacity to work is affected because of your accident injuries. It must also state how long your capacity to work will be affected. Please send original certificates of capacity to the TAC. Photocopied or faxed certificates of capacity can only be accepted if they are sent from a doctor s office. Please take note of the date that your certificate of capacity finishes. To ensure continuous payment of your loss of earnings benefits, please send the TAC any further certificates of capacity at least five working days before your current certificate runs out. You should keep a copy of the certificate of capacity for your own records and send a copy to your employer. 2 Transport Accident Commission

5 Partial loss of earnings If you are able to work reduced hours, you may be eligible for partial loss of earnings benefits. To claim partial loss of earnings please provide certificates of capacity from your doctor detailing your capacity for work and payslips for all earnings while working reduced hours. How long the TAC will pay loss of earnings benefits Most people need loss of earnings benefits only for a short period of time. The TAC will generally stop paying when there is no medical reason relating to your accident injuries that prevents you from returning to work. The TAC will regularly review your progress and your ability to return to work. You may be asked to attend a medical examination so we can better understand your options and ability to return to work. What you need to do You will need to have a conversation with the TAC about your eligibility for loss of earnings benefits. During this discussion you will be asked to provide some information about your employment circumstances. This may include: Your employer s business name and address Contact details of your manager or payroll officer Bank account details including: Bank, branch and account name BSB and account number The TAC will send you a loss of earnings benefits summary which outlines the information you provided during the conversation. It will also ask for the documents we need to complete your loss of earnings assessment. These documents may include: Confirmation of your earnings for the 12 months before your accident, in the form of payslips or a printout of payments from your employer Certificate(s) of capacity. Refer to the section Certificate of Capacity required Completed Tax File Number Declaration form 3

6 Returning to work Returning to work is an important part of recovering from your accident. Returning to work may be possible even if you have not fully recovered from your injuries. Your doctor will be able to give you advice about your capacity to work. The TAC is also here to coordinate support and offer advice. The most important person in any successful return to work is you. Your role is to: Keep in contact with your employer Call your employer every few weeks and let them know how you are progressing. This will encourage your employer to keep your job open for when you are ready to return to work. Talk to your doctor If you are not yet ready to return to your pre-accident work duties, you can talk to your doctor about your capacity to return to work on alternative duties or reduced hours. If you return to work on reduced hours, the TAC can pay you partial loss of earnings. Ask the TAC for support The TAC can discuss your needs and options and help organise your return to work. We can refer you to and pay for consultations with health professionals who are qualified in helping people return to work. The TAC can also fund travel costs for a limited period if your injuries prevent you from getting to and from work. Please contact the TAC on for more information and ask for a copy of the booklet Returning to Work. Working together The TAC respects your privacy The TAC understands that information about your income is highly personal and will treat this information with strict confidence. The TAC is committed to protecting your privacy when collecting, using and maintaining information about you. For more information about the TAC s privacy policy, call or visit Your role You have an important role to play while you receive loss of earnings benefits. You need to ensure that you: Continue to send the TAC certificates of capacity for any period you are unable to fully return to work because of your accident injuries Call the TAC if you or your doctor feel that you are able to return to work in some capacity Call the TAC immediately if you go back to work, either full-time, part-time or casually The most important person in any successful return to work is you. 4 Transport Accident Commission

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8 Contact us Telephone 8.30am to 5.30pm, Monday to Friday (local call) (toll-free outside the Melbourne metropolitan area) Address 8.30am to 5.00pm, Monday to Friday 60 Brougham Street Geelong VIC 3220 Mailing address TAC GPO Box 2751 Melbourne VIC 3001 Website Copyright Transport Accident Commission, 2014 For information about the TAC in your own language, call one of the numbers listed here Tieng Viet