Section 78 Notice
What is Section 78?
So you’ve received a section 78 notice. First of all, what is a section 78 notice?
Section 78 is a notice issued by the WorkCover insurer used by your employer which outlines the decision to decline your claim and the reasons for it. They can either decline medical treatment and expenses or weekly wages or sometimes both.
For an injured worker, receiving a section 78 notice is usually not the end of the line. The insurer normally uses evidence from an independent medical examiner (IME) and other sources to collate evidence to decline your claim.
The insurance company can decline certain parts of a Workers Compensation claim such as particular requests for treatment. For example, a patient may receive a denial notice for a treadmill that they were recommended by a specialist. The insurer stated: “We are therefore disputing liability in relation to the request for a treadmill only.” A big red flag to help patients identify if their claim has been denied is if their weekly payments have ceased or their medical expenses are not being paid for or referrals approved.
You also have an option to request an internal review. Internal review is a lengthy and time consuming process which normally does not change anything. You can argue the case yourself, but it’s best to speak to a lawyer who specializes in personal injury matters for advice on how to respond to a section 78 notice.
Unfortunately most doctors and specialist are time poor and use simple statements and tick boxes to clear an injured worker back to work. We have heard from numerous patients, “he didn’t even look at my ‘injured area’ before clearing me for work!!! ”
Physiotherapy Professionals Parramatta specialize in WorkCover and CTP related matters. We can assist your case by conducting a functional capacity evaluation (FCE). A FCE is a tailor made assessment which we use to gather real-time evidence to support your injury claim. This assessment and report can be provided to your insurer as evidence to show what you can or cannot do in a real-life situations. This report can then be used to either support your case or to challenge what the insurance company has used as evidence in their Section 78 notice.
Contact Us:
Do you need assistance with your injury? Experienced Physiotherapists with essential WorkCover and CTP knowledge. You can call us anytime to have a confidential discussion with our expert team of Physiotherapists.
For more information on how we can further assist you, please call our clinic number on 0479 080 800 or send us an email on [email protected] for further details. Our Physiotherapists are Medicare, NDIS, DVA and Work Cover approved, specialising in injury management and rehabilitation to get you back on track.
Functional Capacity Evaluation (FCE)