Attwood Marshall Lawyers Compensation Law Associate Yasmine Chalvatzis questions whether Safe Work Australia is doing enough to protect workers and support their families, given several recent fatalities at workplaces. She explains what steps you can take if you’re affected by a workplace incident.
Despite advances in workplace health and safety, too many Australians are still being fatally injured on the job.
The Gold Coast community is still reeling from a 21-year-old apprentice mechanic being fatally injured in an explosion at Gold Coast Isuzu after using a grinder on a metal drum in a room filled with ignitable vapours. The incident, which occurred in 2022, also physically injured three other workers and caused psychological injuries to a fourth worker.
Southport Magistrates Court found in May 2025 that the incident occurred due to a failure by the employer – James Frizelle’s Automotive Group, trading as Gold Coast Isuzu – to conduct a risk assessment, implement safety procedures, and provide proper training. The magistrate fined the company $400,000 and said that the risks were “obvious,” “foreseeable,” and could have easily been prevented.
While AI and automation dominate headlines as emerging threats to jobs, the reality is that traditional dangers still claim the lives of workers at an unacceptable rate. These deaths leave behind families grappling not only with devastating loss but also long-term financial hardship.
While workers’ compensation may mean very little when a worker loses their life, it can be a crucial source of support for families who are suddenly left without their primary source of income.
It’s been nearly two centuries since Lord Campbell’s Act first established the right of dependants to claim compensation after a loved one dies because of another’s negligence.
Understanding your rights under workers’ compensation schemes can help make sure you and your family receive the financial support you’re entitled to during this incredibly tough time.
National focus on safety
Safe Work Australia has a 10-year strategy (2023-2033) aimed at reducing workplace injuries and fatalities. It hopes to address longstanding issues such as psychosocial hazards and emerging risks from artificial intelligence, automation and an ageing workforce.
The national policy body also regularly publishes data on national injury and fatality trends, as well as industry-specific risks. Most recently, it published a new workplace health and safety profile for the nursing, care and support workforce – drawing attention to the wide range of physical and psychosocial hazards they most frequently encounter while performing their duties.
Unfortunately, exposure to these hazards contributes to higher injury and illness rates among this workforce compared to other workers.
But can national strategies like Safe Work’s lead to meaningful, enforceable changes at the ground level? Particularly in high-risk sectors such as construction, mining and healthcare?
Sadly, work-related fatalities continue to happen despite stringent regulations and health and safety protocols being in place. The number of fatal workplace accidents occurring in this country remains deeply concerning and demands urgent action.
We need to reduce the risk of fatalities and injuries in the workplace
In relation to the fatality mentioned above, Gold Coast Isuzu was fined $400,000 and had a conviction recorded against it for breaching the Work Health and Safety Act 2011 and failing to comply with its primary health and safety duty.
The 21-year-old suffered burns to 95 per cent of his body and died of his injuries.
The tragic case is among several recent cases highlighting critical failures in workplace safety across different industries.
According to a new landmark study, there is a risk that one in ten workers employed in major tunnelling projects in Queensland will develop deadly silicosis in the future. Worse, 20 to 30 people are also expected to contract lung cancer because their employer fails to provide personal protective equipment, ventilation and properly fitted masks.
Earlier this year, an asphalt-paving company was fined $450,000 after one of its workers was fatally crushed by a truck while repairing equipment in a designated clean-out area. The NSW District Court found that none of the company’s safety protocols were followed or enforced at the time of the incident, and miscommunication and a failure to stop work led to the truck moving forward during the repair.
Claiming compensation for a work-related injury
The principles of Lord Campbell’s Act have been incorporated into local legislation, meaning that loved ones left behind after a spouse, parent, or child is killed are entitled to damages for their emotional and economic loss.
WorkCover death benefit claims are usually available in two different streams – statutory benefits and common law negligence claims.
Statutory Benefits
When a fatality has occurred at work or during the worker’s journey to or from work, family members, including the deceased’s spouse and dependent children, can make a claim for reasonable funeral expenses, a lump sum death benefit and/or periodic payments to the surviving spouse and the dependent children up to the age of 16. Payments to children can be extended beyond this age if the child is aged between 16 and 25 and is studying full-time and not working.
Statutory benefits are payable on a no-fault basis, meaning they are paid regardless of who caused the accident or who was responsible for the death.
For example, if an employee is killed on their way home from work in a single motor vehicle accident that was due to their own fault or negligence, a statutory lump sum and weekly benefits would be available to the family of the deceased worker. Likewise, if a worker dies through no fault of the employer (this does not happen very often), then the WorkCover benefits are payable.
Common Law Negligence Claims
In the circumstances where an employer’s negligence (or the negligence of another third party) caused a fatality, this opens the door to pursuing a ‘common law claim’ being made by the dependants of the worker who lost their life on the job.
Generally, all employers in Australia are required by law to obtain workers’ compensation insurance to cover their workers, unless they are self-insurers.
In New South Wales, employers must obtain and maintain a policy of insurance for the full amount of their liability under the Workers Compensation Act 1987.
Similarly, in Victoria, employers are required to obtain WorkCover Insurance with the Victorian WorkCover Authority unless they meet specific exemption criteria.
In Queensland, the Workers’ Compensation and Rehabilitation Act 2003 mandates that employers must insure with WorkCover Queensland unless they are licensed as self-insurers.
Most fatal work injuries are usually caused by the negligence of or failure of the employer to have proper safety systems at work. It is important to understand that in any claim against an employer, the claim is paid by the Insurer, not the employer themselves. It is similar to your insurance company paying for a claim made against you if you are at fault in a car accident.
A claim made by family members who were financially dependent and non-financially dependent that would have been expected to be provided by the deceased worker to such dependants had they survived is known as a ‘dependency claim’ or a ‘compensation to relatives claim’ or, in legal parlance, a ‘Lord Campbell’s claim.’
Unlike statutory WorkCover amounts, a common law dependency claim has no cap on the amounts recoverable and each case is dealt with on its own facts.
The younger the children and spouse, the higher the compensation usually is, because the claim is based on the loss of financial support from the deceased spouse or parent for the applicable period. For example, a spouse may have been dependent on the deceased worker for their entire life. Likewise, a disabled child may have a lifetime financial dependency. Other children may have only been dependant until they were 18.
There are requirements under each legislation to commence a common law claim requiring claim forms to be completed and served upon the employer and Insurer, which we prepare on your behalf.
An out of court conference must be held with the Insurers’ legal representation as part of the claims process. Out of court negotiations allow the parties to attempt resolution of a claim without the need for the parties to expend the considerable time and costs required to progress to a trial.
Usually, any settlement on behalf of minor children needs to be sanctioned by a Court, and sometimes, a trustee is appointed to manage the funds for the children until they turn 18.
A nervous shock claim may also be available to any immediate family member or surviving loved one who have suffered a recognisable psychiatric illness as a result of negligent death, where it is reasonably foreseeable that such family members would be so affected. These claims are restricted to damages for pain and suffering of the psychiatric injury and any loss or damage that flows from the psychiatric injury. The law does not compensate a family member for grief or distress.
The damages recoverable in these claims for the psychiatric harm itself are restricted by the state’s legislation, which govern damages awards for personal injury claims.
Due to the procedural requirements of such claims and the evidentiary burden of establishing an entitlement to pursue such damages, these claims require an independent medical examination with an expert psychiatrist, who will prepare a report outlining the psychiatric injury. The respondent’s insurer may also require the family member to undergo a psychiatric examination with an expert of their choosing, and it is common for a claimant to undergo two assessments for the purpose of these claims.
Due to the cost involved and the general damages to be recovered, not all clients decide to proceed with such claims, unless their condition is having a significant impact on their ability to work or undertake day to day activity.
If you have lost a family member to a work-related injury, it is essential to understand the steps to take to make a dependency claim through WorkCover
First and foremost, when you lose a loved one, it is important to seek the support you need throughout the grieving process. This can come from family members, your General Practitioner, or a psychologist or psychiatrist.
Following getting the immediate support you need, you can then take the steps to lodge a claim with WorkCover for compensation. This is the initial statutory benefits claim.
As part of the claim, WorkCover will need to know the cause of the person’s death, your relationship with the person and your dependency on the person. You’ll typically need proof of death, relationship, dependency, and funeral expenses.
For WorkCover to approve a claim of this nature, they will want to confirm that:
- The person was employed at the time of the injury by the employer,
- The person was considered a “worker,”
- A work-related incident caused the fatal injury, and
- That employment was a significant contributing factor to the fatal injury, or that the fatal injury occurred during a journey to or from work.
WorkCover will reimburse any reasonable costs of a worker’s funeral, either by paying the individual who covered these costs or paying the funeral home directly if appropriate to do so.
Other types of compensation and death benefits
Most workers have superannuation with death benefits, and in some cases, a separate life insurance policy that has a lump sum benefit (perhaps attached to their credit card). If the fatality involves a car accident or a vehicle, there may also be compensation through Compulsory Third-Party Insurance if another vehicle was at fault. It’s worth reviewing all entitlements with a legal professional.
Attwood Marshall Lawyers – helping workers and their loved ones through difficult times
WorkCover Death Benefit Claims are understandably extremely difficult to work through, especially when dependents are grieving the loss of their loved one.
When making a WorkCover claim, it can be helpful to have an experienced compensation lawyer support you, who understands the process involved and the evidence required to ensure the claim proceeds as quickly and smoothly as possible.
When leaning on a compensation lawyer, you can take comfort in knowing they are there to handle the day-to-day interactions and negotiations with the insurer, allowing the family to focus on healing and their immediate priorities.
There are often complex issues that can arise when administering the estate of the deceased and obtaining a grant of probate or letters of administration if there is no Will. It can be even more complex if the spouse has separated from the deceased at the time of the death or if there is a conflict with the family of the deceased. Our firm has a dedicated Wills and Estates department that frequently handles these types of estate administration matters involving compensation and practice solely in this complex area of law.
Attwood Marshall Lawyers offers a free case assessment to review your claim and explain what you can expect right from the start.
Our lawyers have the experience to take on large insurance companies and advocate for the rights of workers and their loved ones to achieve the very best outcome.
We operate on a No Win, No Fee basis for all workers’ compensation claims. For a confidential discussion about your specific circumstances, please call our Compensation Law Department on 1800 621 071 any time.
