Practical review
What to check in this situation
- Describe the task, force, hazard, body part and onset without guessing facts or dates.
- Ask for CCTV or other short-retention records to be preserved promptly.
- Check whether work capacity, treatment approval and wage loss need separate documents.
Records that may help
Keep photographs, messages, witness details, roster or access records, first clinical notes, referrals, receipts and Certificates of Capacity.
Next procedural step
Follow up in writing until the insurer confirms receipt and identifies the next decision.
Overview
What should you do first after a work injury in NSW?
Get medical treatment, tell the doctor the injury is work-related, notify your employer in writing, obtain a Certificate of Capacity, and preserve incident, witness, wage, and insurer records. If liability, treatment, an independent medical examination (IME), or weekly payments become disputed, keep the decision pack and obtain advice about the evidence, available procedure and any applicable time limit.
Initial checklist
- Get treatment and tell the doctor the injury is work-related.
- Notify your employer early and keep written proof.
- Obtain a Certificate of Capacity and keep every document.
- Watch closely for insurer delay, treatment refusal, or wage mistakes.
- Seek advice if liability, capacity, treatment, or payments are disputed.
Why the initial records matter
NSW workers compensation claims often look straightforward at the beginning. Then small mistakes start compounding. A vague first certificate, no written notice to the employer, missing payslips, or delayed treatment approval can later become the insurer's explanation for refusing liability, reducing weekly payments, or arguing that your restrictions are not well supported. The point of this page is not to make the process sound dramatic. It is to help you keep the initial medical, employment, wage, and insurer records clear and complete.
Get treatment and explain it is work-related
See your GP or hospital promptly, explain how the injury happened, and make sure the records clearly identify the injury as work-related.
Notify your employer and create a paper trail
Tell your employer as soon as possible, ask for the incident to be recorded in the Register of Injuries, and keep written proof of the notification.
Secure your Certificate of Capacity and early records
Obtain a Certificate of Capacity, keep referrals, imaging requests, witness details, and preserve the first version of every medical document.
Keep each insurer notice and calculation
Keep provisional-liability notices, treatment decisions, wage calculations, work-capacity decisions and IME appointment material. The document and its stated reasons determine what response may be available.
Check the available response if a decision is disputed
If you receive a denial, section 78 notice, work-capacity decision, or treatment refusal, preserve the decision pack and obtain advice about the evidence, procedure, and any applicable time limit.
Documents to preserve from day one
- Certificate of Capacity and all updated certificates
- GP notes, specialist referrals, imaging requests, and scan results
- Employer injury reports, emails, text messages, and witness details
- Insurer claim numbers, call notes, decision letters, and medical requests
- Payslips, rosters, overtime history, and second-job wage records
- Receipts for treatment, travel, medication, and related expenses
Where claims start drifting off course
- The incident is reported verbally only, leaving later arguments about notice.
- The first certificate is too general to support restrictions or time off.
- Wages are never checked, so the wrong PIAWE figure becomes normal.
- Treatment stalls while the insurer says it needs more information.
- An IME report gets treated as definitive before treating evidence is organised.
What usually goes wrong before workers realise there is a dispute
Most NSW workers do not receive a dramatic denial on day one. Problems usually arrive as smaller decisions that sound temporary or routine. That is why the early stage deserves more attention than it gets.
The insurer says it is still assessing liability
A claim can sit in a vague holding pattern while the insurer asks for more records, sends questionnaires, or hints there may be a reasonable excuse. If that delay becomes a formal refusal, use the provisional liability guide and the claim denied guide.
Weekly payments start at the wrong amount
Overtime, shift loadings, allowances, and second-job income are often missed early. That can underpay you for months before anyone spots the problem. Check the PIAWE calculation guide and the PIAWE recalculation pathway.
Treatment delay becomes an evidence problem
When physio, scans, specialist reviews, or surgery recommendations are delayed, your recovery is not the only thing affected. The medical evidence picture can also weaken. Start with the treatment denied guide or the surgery denied guide.
An IME report starts driving the file
Independent medical exams often become the insurer's preferred evidence on causation, capacity, or treatment need. If the report is thin, selective, or unfair, compare it against your treating records using the IME guide and the unfair IME response guide.
When to get legal advice
Plenty of workers wait until payments stop entirely or treatment is refused in writing. That is understandable, but often late. Get advice early if your claim is denied, your employer disputes how the injury happened, your weekly payments are reduced, your treatment is delayed, or the insurer starts reframing the issue as a work-capacity dispute. The sooner the evidence is organised, the more options you usually keep.
If the injury has already shifted into a formal dispute, review the disputes hub, the workers compensation process hub, and the weekly payments stopped guide.
Need help understanding an insurer decision?
We can review the stage of the claim, the documents you have, and whether the current issue concerns liability, treatment, weekly payments, work capacity or another decision.
Frequently asked questions
How soon should I report a workplace injury in NSW?
As soon as possible. Early notice to your employer and early medical records reduce arguments about late reporting and usually make the claim easier to manage.
What documents should I keep after a work injury?
Keep certificates of capacity, GP and specialist reports, insurer letters, claim numbers, employer incident reports, witness notes, payslips, and receipts for treatment-related expenses.
When should I get legal advice for a NSW workers compensation claim?
Consider obtaining advice promptly if your claim is denied, treatment is refused, weekly payments are reduced or stopped, you receive a section 78 notice, or an IME report is relied on for an adverse decision.
Related early-stage claim and dispute guides
- Workers compensation services (NSW)
- Resources hub
- How to make a NSW workers compensation claim
- Provisional liability and the 7-day rule
- Detailed claim process guide
- Weekly payments hub
- Weekly payments stopped or reduced
- Treatment denied under workers comp NSW
- Unfair IME report guide
- Section 78 notice guide
- Start free claim check
General information only. This page is not legal advice and does not replace advice tailored to your facts, medical evidence, or statutory deadlines.