Western Australian Current Acts

POLICE ACT 1892 - SECT 33ZW

33ZW .         Compensation for permanent impairment

        (1)         In this section —

        degree of permanent impairment means —

            (a)         except as provided in paragraph (b) — the degree of permanent impairment of a part or faculty of the body; or

            (b)         in the case of scarring referred to in item 43 or 44 in the Table to section 101 of the WCIM Act — the degree of permanent whole of person impairment.

        (2)         The Police Commissioner may appoint a person approved as a permanent impairment assessor under section 193(1) of the WCIM Act to be an approved permanent impairment assessor for the purposes of this section.

        (3)         The medically retired member is entitled to compensation under this subsection if —

            (a)         on their entitlement day the medically retired member has a permanent impairment that is an impairment mentioned in column 1 of the Table to section 101 of the WCIM Act; and

            (b)         the permanent impairment resulted from a compensable medical condition that the medically retired member has or had; and

            (c)         the compensable medical condition is or was a personal injury by accident.

        (4)         The Police Commissioner —

            (a)         may arrange for the assessment under subsection (5) of, and give a notice under subsection (6) in respect of —

                  (i)         a member who has been directed to submit to an examination under section 33ZC; or

                  (ii)         a medically retired member whose entitlement day has not fallen;

                or

            (b)         if the medically retired member is entitled to compensation under subsection (3) and has not been assessed under subsection (5), must arrange for that assessment and give a notice under subsection (6) in respect of the medically retired member.

        Example for paragraph (a):

                The assessment may be made, and the notice may be given, in parallel with the process under Part IIC that leads to retirement on medical grounds.

        (5)         For the purposes of subsection (4) —

            (a)         the degree of permanent impairment must be assessed, as a percentage, by an approved permanent impairment assessor; and

            (b)         subject to regulations made for the purposes of section 33ZZI(1), the degree of permanent impairment must be assessed in accordance with the Permanent Impairment Guidelines as in force when the assessment is made.

        (6)         The Police Commissioner must give the member assessed a notice specifying the degree of permanent impairment as assessed.

        (7)         The amount of compensation to which the medically retired member is entitled under subsection (3) is X% of the prescribed amount for the financial year that is the entitlement financial year of the medically retired member, where X% is the percentage indicated, in relation to the impairment, in column 2 of the Table to section 101 of the WCIM Act.

        (8)         However, if the degree of permanent impairment assessed under subsection (5) is less than 100%, the amount of compensation is reduced to Y% of the amount that it would otherwise be under subsection (7), where Y% is the degree of permanent impairment.

        (9)         Subsections (3) to (8) are subject to sections 33ZX and 33ZY.

        (10)         If the medically retired member has 2 or more permanent impairments as referred to in subsection (3) —

            (a)         subsections (3) to (9) apply separately in relation to each permanent impairment; but

            (b)         the maximum amount of compensation to which the medically retired member can be entitled, in total, under subsection (3) is the prescribed amount for the financial year that is the entitlement financial year of the medically retired member.

        [Section 33ZW inserted: No. 26 of 2021 s. 4; amended: No. 21 of 2023 s. 688.]