June
25, 2007 Source:
WorkInjury.com
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DWC Urges Rechecking TD Payments Paid Per Hawkins Case
On June 13, 2007 the Worker's Compensation Appeals Board issued an en banc
opinion in the case of Hawkins v. Amberwood Products; SCIF, which holds that the two-year period of temporary disability (TD) payments commences when the first TD benefit is actually paid -- not from the starting date of the period the payments are intended to cover.
The case decision states that "the date of commencement of temporary disability payment," as used in Labor Code section 4656(c)(1), means the date on which temporary disability indemnity is first paid, not the date for which temporary disability indemnity is first owed. (To read our recent article, and the full opinion on this case, CLICK HERE.)
In light of this decision, the Division of Workers' Compensation is formally urging claims
administrators to confirm they correctly paid TD benefits for injuries that occurred on or after April 19, 2004. If not, the DWC advises that "the claims administrator should immediately correct any underpayment, along with the 10 percent interest required by Labor Code section 4650."
The DWC goes on to say:
"All injured employees who were still receiving TD payments at the end of two years should have received 104 weeks of payments from the date of the commencement of the TD payments. An oversight in this area could subject a claims administrator to penalties should a violation of the law be found during the audit process."
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