An employee who was permanently disabled received a lump sum cheque from the Compensation Commissioner, but does not feel that she was paid the correct amount of compensation money.

What Does the Law Say?

For all types of disability (temporary and permanent) there are certain ways of working out whether the compensation money has been correctly calculated. For permanent disabilities, a list of percentage disabilities says how much compensation will be paid for each form of disability. It is up to the Compensation Commissioner to decide what percentage disability the employee has, based on the medical reports from the doctor who treats the employee.
(See: What types of compensation payment are made?)

For more information on how to calculate how much compensation money should be paid out, see the website: www.wcomp.gov.za

What Can You Do?

• Write a letter to the Compensation Commissioner asking them for the details of how they calculated the compensation money. Remember to include the claim number and all the important details about the claim, which you can find in Model Letter to Compensation Commissioner Asking for Reasons for the Delay in Paying.
• Read What types of compensation payment are made? to calculate whether the compensation money was correctly calculated. If it seems that the doctor made a mistake with the percentage disability, the employee has a right to a second opinion from another doctor. This is called a re-assessment of the injury.
• The employee can get a second opinion from an independent doctor but the employee must pay this doctor.
• Send the second opinion to the Compensation Commissioner. They will assess it and decide whether to re-open the case. If the Compensation Commissioner decides that the employee should have got more money, the employee will be refunded.
• If the employee wishes to object to a decision of the Commissioner, an objection must be sent within 60 days of the Commissioner’s decision. Include the claim number and all the details of the employee’s claim as listed in Model letter to Compensation Commissioner Asking for Reasons for the Delay in Paying.