Work injury compensation · Queensland
Injured at work? Two possible claims.
WorkCover pays weekly compensation and your medical costs, whoever was at fault. A common law claim can recover what WorkCover doesn’t when your employer or someone else was negligent. We run both in one file.
Two clocks start when you’re hurt
Queensland time limits · not to scale
- Day 0 The injury Tell your employer, see a doctor and keep every medical certificate.
- 20 business daysGood practice Lodge for full back pay Weekly payments are back-dated only 20 business days before you lodge.
- 6 months WorkCover application Apply within 6 months of a doctor first assessing the injury. Late applications are accepted only in limited cases.
- 3 years Common law proceedings Court proceedings must start within 3 years of the injury, with a Notice of Claim for Damages served first.
- 6 months to apply to WorkCover
- No-obligation first consultation
- No win, no fee*
- We set out our costs in writing at the start.
Claim types
Work injury claims we handle
WorkCover and common law claims across every Queensland industry, including claims against host employers, principals and contractors.
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- Retail workers Manual handling, repetitive strain and customer violence.
- FIFO & remote workers Fatigue, long shifts and delayed medical care at remote sites.
- Silicosis & dust disease Stonemasons, miners and construction workers exposed to silica dust.
- Psychological injury Covered when work was a significant contributing factor, unless it came from reasonable management action.
- Construction site injuries Struck-by incidents, plant accidents, trench collapses and electrical incidents.
- Scaffolding collapses Platform failures, falls and defective scaffold erection.
- Labour hire workers Hurt at a host employer’s site, with claims against the host and the agency.
- Contractors Contractors who count as workers under Queensland’s workers’ compensation Act.
- Workers’ compensation Weekly payments and medical costs for workers hurt at work or made ill by it.
- Construction accidents Falls from height, crane strikes and silica or asbestos exposure.
- Emergency service workers Assaults and PTSD for police, paramedics, firefighters and SES volunteers.
- Factory accidents Press and conveyor crush injuries, forklift strikes and repetitive strain.
- Farm workers Quad bike rollovers, PTO entanglement, livestock and chemical injuries.
- Heavy industry Steelworks, refineries, shipyards and power stations.
- Hospitality workers Burns, slips, cuts and assaults by patrons.
- Hospital & health care workers Manual handling, needle-stick injuries, patient assault and vicarious trauma.
- Metal fabrication Press-brake amputations, grinder kickback, weld-flash burns and metal fume.
- Mining accidents Haul truck rollovers, falls, explosives incidents and coal dust disease.
- Oil & gas workers Well-site burns, rig falls, gas exposure and offshore injuries.
- Truck drivers at work WorkCover for the injury, and CTP when another vehicle is at fault.
- Warehouse & logistics Forklift strikes, racking collapses and pick-rate injuries.
- Discrimination & harassment Sexual harassment, bullying and discrimination at work.
Our approach
More than one party can share the duty
Workplaces are layered: a principal, a head contractor, subcontractors, labour hire firms and plant owners can all share the duty for one injury. We run your WorkCover claim and your common law claim in one file, map every party on day one and join the right defendants before time runs out.
- 01WorkCover and common law run in one file
- 02Every avenue checked: common law, CTP, public and product liability
- 03A senior solicitor, in touch every fortnight
- 04Reviews, QIRC appeals and court proceedings handled
- 05Offices in Brisbane CBD, Woolloongabba and Browns Plains
Compensation
What you can claim
WorkCover pays whoever was at fault. Common law adds what WorkCover doesn’t, and WorkCover’s payments are refunded from it.
Our process
From first call to final settlement
- No obligation Initial consultation We confirm WorkCover eligibility, find any common law claim and flag CTP or public liability claims.
- Within 6 months WorkCover lodgement We lodge your application, secure incident reports and doctor evidence, and chase weekly payments.
- In parallel Common law investigation Liability mapped, experts briefed and the Notice of Claim for Damages prepared.
- Before court Compulsory conference & settlement We negotiate with the employer and any other party, and settle WorkCover refunds and Centrelink charges.
FAQ
Common questions
Two clocks run at the same time. WorkCover Application: within 6 months after a doctor first assesses the injury, with late applications accepted only in limited circumstances. Lodge within 20 business days of the injury, or weekly payments are back-dated only 20 business days before you lodge. Common law claim: 3 years from the date of injury to commence court proceedings, with a Notice of Claim under WCRA s 275 required earlier. Miss the WorkCover window and statutory benefits can be lost. Call before doing anything else.
WorkCover is the no-fault statutory scheme. You get weekly compensation, medical and rehabilitation expenses, and a lump sum for permanent impairment regardless of who was at fault. Common law damages is the fault-based claim against a negligent employer or third party. It can include pain and suffering, future economic loss, future care, and superannuation losses. Both can run for the same injury, with the WorkCover refund paid back from any common law settlement. One catch: if your permanent impairment is assessed below 20%, you must choose between the lump sum and a common law claim.
Yes. Queensland applies contributory negligence, which reduces damages by the percentage of fault attributed to you rather than barring the claim outright. A 20% finding against you reduces damages by 20%; the other 80% is still recoverable. WorkCover statutory benefits are not affected by contributory negligence. We work to keep any contribution finding as low as the evidence allows.
WorkCover statutory benefits start within weeks of lodgement. The common law claim runs longer because it requires a stable medical position before damages can be quantified. Straightforward common law matters settle within 12 to 18 months; complex multi-defendant or psychiatric claims often run 18 to 36 months. We progress both tracks in parallel and report on each fortnightly so you always know where things stand.
Ready to start your work injury claim?
WorkCover and common law insurers run to their own timetables. Put one senior solicitor on both. There’s no obligation to go ahead.