Court upholds recovery of half of benefits for accident before insurance establishment report

Who this helps

This may help people curious about an employer who faced a benefit recovery decision because an accident happened in a period when no insurance establishment report had been filed.

Case overview

Court

Ulsan District Court

Date of judgment

Feb 24, 1999 (Wed)

Topic

Industrial Accidents

Original title (Korean)

사업장변경 성립신고 전 발생한 산재를 이유로 지급된 보험급여의 절반을 징수한 처분이 정당하다고 본 사례

A worker at a subcontracted worksite died in an explosion during welding. The agency that issued the disposition paid survivor benefits and funeral expenses to the bereaved family. It then issued a disposition collecting 71,175,000 won (KRW) from the business owner, which was 50 percent (half) of the benefits paid, because the accident occurred during a period when no report of establishment of the insurance relationship had been filed. The plaintiff asked for this disposition to be revoked.

Is it justified to recover half of the benefits because the accident happened before the establishment report?

A worker died in an explosion during welding work at a subcontract site. The bereaved family received survivor benefits and funeral expenses. The agency then recovered half of the amount paid, 71,175,000 won, from the employer because the accident happened in a period with no establishment report. The employer asked the court to cancel this decision, but the court viewed the business as one that needed a new establishment report and found the decision justified.

How the court ruled

The court found that the plaintiff's business was not subject to a change report for an existing business, but was a new business that had to file an establishment report. The periods of employing workers were not continuous, the work period, place and equipment differed for each subcontract, and the employment relationship ended when each contract ended. Because no establishment report was filed, the court found the disposition lawful and dismissed the claim.

What to check in a similar situation

The agency in charge of industrial accident insurance and the court are where one can check how a business change report is distinguished from a new establishment report, and how the recovery procedure works.

• Unpaid wages and work injuries
• Find support centers
• Contacts: Ministry of Employment and Labor helpline 1350

Terms explained

Insurance relationship establishment report

A report telling the agency that a business has started and is covered by industrial accident insurance.

Recovery of insurance benefits

A decision to collect back from the employer part of the benefits that were already paid out.

Survivor benefits and funeral expenses

Benefits and funeral costs paid to the family of a worker who died in an industrial accident.

Dismissal of the claim

A court decision not to accept the claim of the person who filed the lawsuit.

More rulings on this topic

• Court Recognizes Immigration Officer Who Fell to Death While Searching for Illegal Residents as Official Killed in Line of Duty · Seoul Administrative Court
• Ruling revoking denial of medical care benefits for a foreign worker injured while fleeing a crackdown · Busan High Court

See all 3 rulings on Industrial Accidents →

Frequently asked questions

Who filed the lawsuit?

The employer who received the decision to recover half of the benefits sued to have that decision canceled.

How did the court decide?

The court saw the business as one needing a new establishment report, not a change report for an existing business. The worker's employment was not continuous, each subcontract differed in period, place and equipment, and the employment ended when the contract ended. So it dismissed the claim.

Does this result apply as is to similar cases?

This ruling is a decision on that particular case and does not apply as is to other cases.