Volunteer firefighters injured in the line of duty are to receive the same benefits and compensation as paid firefighters now that new laws have come into force.
Welcoming the changes, Minister for Customer Service and Digital Government, Victor Dominello said the Motor Accidents and Workers Compensation Legislation Amendment Bill 2021 amended the workers compensation and motor accidents legislation, as well as the State Insurance and Care Governance Act 2015, the Workers Compensation (Bush Fire, Emergency and Rescue Services) Act 1987 and the Personal Injury Commission Act 2020.
“The devastating 2019-2020 bushfire season exposed a discrepancy in workers compensation entitlements between volunteer and paid firefighters who both give their time and expertise to protect communities across the State,” Mr Dominello said.
“[The] changes make sure that volunteers and their families receive the same access to provisional liability, compensation for funeral costs, and some other return to work and training costs, as their paid counterparts,” he said.
“These changes also extend to SES volunteers, surf lifesavers, marine rescue, and volunteer rescue association workers.”
Mr Dominello said the new laws also supported the children of people killed in workplace accidents, who would now receive compensation to cover the costs of the NSW Trustee and Guardian managing their lump sum payment until they turned 18.
“We are taking a more data driven approach to ensure that taxis and hire car vehicles pay fair premiums based on the calculation of their fare paying kilometres,” the Minister said.
“The State Insurance Regulatory Authority will have additional powers to set standards and monitor the performance of health service providers.”
He said statutory benefits for loss of income up to two years were now also available to injured road users involved in blameless accidents, where no driver was at fault.
