New York Workers’ Compensation Law Section 114-a prohibits the making of false statements to obtain workers’ comepnsation benefits. In practice, this means statements made inside a court room and statements made to doctors in examining rooms. In the real world, two recent cases show exactly how an employer can demonstrate employee fraud.
1. Video.
In a recent case, a New York Appellate Court affirmed a disqualification from benefits where video surveillance of the claimant showed him going to and leaving a medical examiner’s office with a leg brace and a cane AND A WALKER. While that portion video (a cane and a walker!?! How could he even do that with only hands!?!) showed a severely disabled accident victim, later scenes, in which the claimant is able to move his leg freely, and without a brace, a cane or a walker, showed that he actually had no impairment in his daily activities.
The WCB ruled that the claimant had violated WCL Sect. 114-a and was disqualified from comp benefits. The appellate panel, on review, affirmed that disqualification.
Case: Retz v. Surpass Chem. Co., 834 N.Y.S.2d 389 (2007).
2. Statements – outside of court.
Video can be persuasive, but even better than video is the claimant’s own words. In another recent case, an employe neglected to reveal a prior, very significant injury that resulted in neck and back injuries when filling out forms to obtain workers’ comp benefits. The claimant repeated answered “No” on multiple daily activities questionnaires that asked “Did you have any injuries, illnesses, or limitations before this workers’ comp injury?”
The claimant, who had suffered severe cervical and lumbar injuries just prior to his workers’ comp claim, failed to disclose those injuries. The claimant argued that the questions were ambiguous and that he wasn’t sure exactly what he was being asked. The WCB determined that the claimant knew he was providing false information in connection with his workers’ comp claim and disqualified the claimant from further benefits.
Case: Husak v. New York City Transit Authority, 836 N.Y.S. 2d 319 (2007).