Social Security Contributions and Benefits (Northern Ireland) Act 1992

Provisions supplementary to paragraph 2 N.I.

3 (1) For the purposes of paragraph 2 above— N.I.

(a) the expressions “relevant accident” and “relevant injury or disease” mean the accident in consequence of which or, as the case may be, the injury or disease in respect of which, an entitlement to weekly payments by way of workmen’s compensation arose;

(b) any reference to the happening of an accident shall, in relation to a case of disease, be construed in the same way as for the purposes of the Workmen’s Compensation Acts;

(c) a payment—

(i) under the M1 M2 Workmen’s Compensation (War Addition) Acts 1917 and 1919 ; or

(ii) under the M3 Workmen’s Compensation (Supplementary Allowances) Act (Northern Ireland) 1940 as amended by the M4 Workmen’s Compensation (Temporary Increases) Act (Northern Ireland) 1943 ,

shall be treated as a weekly payment by way of workmen’s compensation.

(2) For the purposes of paragraph 2(1) above, a person shall be deemed to be or have been entitled to weekly payments by way of workmen’s compensation at any time if he would be or, as the case may be, have been so entitled at that time if—

(a) the amount of any payment, allowance or benefit received by him otherwise than by way of workmen’s compensation; or

(b) where the relevant accident happened before 1st January 1924, either that amount, or the amount he is earning or able to earn in some suitable employment or business, or both those amounts,

were sufficiently reduced.

(3) Subject to sub-paragraph (7) below, for the purpose of the reference in paragraph 2(8)(b) above to a period of total incapacity for work resulting from the relevant injury or disease, a person who is or has been unable to obtain employment shall be treated as subject to such an incapacity if he is treated as being so for the purposes of his workmen’s compensation in respect of the relevant injury or disease and in such other circumstances as may be provided by the regulations.

(4) Any reference in paragraph 2 above or this paragraph to the amount of a person’s workmen’s compensation shall (subject to sub-paragraphs (5) to (7) below) be taken as referring to the amount, if any, of the weekly payments to which for the time being he is, or would but for the determination of his right be, entitled in respect of the relevant injury or disease so, however, that—

(a) where in fixing the amount of those weekly payments under the provisions relating to them regard was had to any payment, allowance or benefit which he might receive during the period of his incapacity from the person liable for the compensation, and the amount is shown to have been reduced in consequence, the amount of those weekly payments shall for the purposes of this sub-paragraph be taken to be the reduced amount so fixed with the addition of the amount of the reduction; and

(b) where the amount of those weekly payments has not been fixed under the said provisions, it shall be fixed for the purposes of this sub-paragraph without regard to any such payment, allowance or benefit.

(5) The regulations may include provision that, in such special circumstances or cases and for such purposes as may be specified in the regulations, any reference in paragraph 2 above or this paragraph to the amount of a person’s workmen’s compensation shall be taken as referring to such amount as it may be determined in manner provided by the regulations ought reasonably and properly to have been the amount of the weekly payments referred to in sub-paragraph (4) above.

(6) Where a person is, or has at any time after 23rd July 1951 been, entitled to payments under the enactments referred to in sub-paragraph (1)(c)(i) or (ii) above but ceased before 24th July 1951 to be entitled to any other weekly payments by way of workmen’s compensation in respect of the relevant injury or disease, the amount of his workmen’s compensation shall for the purposes of paragraph 2 above be calculated as if he had not ceased to be entitled to such other payments.

(7) The regulations may provide for modifying the operation of sub-paragraphs (3) to (5) above in relation to a person whose workmen’s compensation is or was compensation under a contracting-out scheme in such manner as appears to the Department to be proper having regard to the provisions of the contracting-out scheme.

Marginal Citations

M1 1917 c. 42.

M2 1919 c. 83.

M3 1940 c. 18 (N.I.).

M4 1943 c. 13 (N.I.).