Victorian Numbered Acts Victorian Numbered Acts(1) If—
(a) a worker's death results from, or is materially contributed to by, an injury arising out of or in the course of employment; and
(b) had the worker had a dependant, or dependants, at the time of his or her death, the injury would have entitled that dependant or those dependants to compensation under this Act; and
(c) the worker did not have any dependants at the time of his or her death—
a member of the worker's family may apply to the Magistrates' Court for an order that the Authority or a self-insurer (as appropriate) reimburse the applicant for expenses incurred as a result of the worker's death.
(2) An application under this section must—
(a) specify the expenses of the applicant incurred as a result of the death of the worker and how the incurring of those expenses caused financial hardship to the applicant; and
(b) unless subsection (3) applies, be made within 2 years after the date of the worker's death.
(3) The Magistrates' Court may grant leave to an applicant to apply out of time, if the applicant has a special excuse for not making the application within time.
(4) On application under this section, the Magistrates' Court may, in its discretion, order that the Authority or a self-insurer reimburse an applicant for expenses not exceeding the maximum amount if the Magistrates' Court is satisfied that—
(a) the expenses incurred by the applicant were as a result of the death of the worker; and
(b) the expenses were reasonably incurred and are of a reasonable amount; and
(c) the incurring of the expenses caused financial hardship to the applicant.
(5) In making an order under this section, the Magistrates' Court may order that more than one applicant in respect of a deceased worker be reimbursed by the Authority or self-insurer under this section.
(6) The total amount that can be ordered under this section to be reimbursed in respect of the deceased worker must not exceed the maximum amount regardless of how many applicants apply in respect of that deceased worker.
(7) The Magistrates' Court must not award any interest in making an order for reimbursement of an applicant under this section.
(8) A reimbursement of expenses under this section is not a payment of compensation under this Act except for the purposes of—
(a) calculating premiums under Part 10; or
(b) seeking indemnity from a third party under section 369 or any other indemnity under this Act; or
(c) seeking a refund of payments under section 599 or any other amount relating to the recovery of payments under this Act.
(9) In this section—
"expenses" does not include the following—
(a) the cost of any service or contribution that may be claimed under Division 7;
(b) the legal or other costs of a member of the deceased worker's family incurred by that person as a result of a dispute arising from the deceased worker's will, or the distribution of the deceased worker's estate;
(c) an expense incurred as a result of the loss of a service provided to a member of the deceased worker's family;
"maximum amount "means an amount of $33 120 in total for expenses incurred as a result of a worker's death.