Qld bosses turn to PIs to expose alleged WorkCover fraud
Business owners are demanding an inquiry into Queensland’s $7bn WorkCover scheme after investigators exposed alleged fraudsters receiving compensation while secretly working.
Queensland business owners say they have been forced to hire private investigators to expose alleged bogus workers compensation claims as they call for an inquiry into the state’s $7bn scheme.
Covert footage captured by undercover investigators shows one alleged WorkCover claimant, who said they had an upper body injury, running lineout practice for a rugby union team, while a woman receiving payments for a supposed mental health injury was filmed giving horse riding lessons – which she denied.
Internet searches uncovered on her work computer by a PI allegedly included terms such as “framing boss for work compensation”, “recording boss for work compensation” and “starting argument with boss while recording (on phone)”.
Bosses of companies employing hundreds of Queenslanders, and paying millions of dollars in WorkCover premiums, say the system is “broken”, with a lack of oversight of employee rorts, and are calling for an inquiry and shake-up.
It comes amid a surge in workers compensation and disability insurance claims on the back of a steep rise in alleged mental health injuries, with WorkCover handling 74,000 compensation cases last year. More than 3600, or 15 per cent, were mental health-related. Only four cases were prosecuted for fraud in 2024-25.
One Queensland business owner, who hired a PI to investigate an employee’s alleged bogus WorkCover claim which morphed from a stated physical injury to a psychological one, said in his experience “ambulance-chasing lawyers” and “doctor-shopping” workers were rorting the system.
“To me, the system is broken on many fronts,” said the company boss, who The Sunday Mail has chosen not to identify.
“Trying to get them (WorkCover) to understand what business is confronted with when you have these bogus claims is virtually impossible, let alone trying to get them to even communicate.”
He said when he met with WorkCover to raise his concerns, he was dismissed as a “whingeing company owner”.
After a worker with a supposed severe upper body injury was allegedly caught on camera running lineout practice for a rugby team while on compo, the business owner said a WorkCover executive told him that “we can’t control what people (claimants) do on weekends”.
He said he believed about 30 per cent of WorkCover claims were not legitimate. “When economic times get tough, people go looking for cash, and that’s where the ambulance-chasing lawyers and compliant doctors come in,” he said.
He said WorkCover, which insures all Queensland businesses with fewer than 2000 employees, was essential but it needed urgent reform.
Another employer, Caboolture transport company owner Rodney Johnston, also hired a private investigator to probe an employee’s WorkCover claim.
Mr Johnston, of Bulk Granite Haulage, said the worker received WorkCover payments for about two years despite his constant protests about the legitimacy of the claim. A Workers Compensation Regulator appeals officer eventually concluded the employee acted in a “deliberate and pre-planned way” and agreed with Mr Johnston that he was “set up”.
Deputy Premier and Industrial Relations Minister Jarrod Bleijie said his government took a “zero-tolerance” approach to bogus workers compensation claims.
“WorkCover’s new leadership has made fraud detection a priority action while also freezing premiums in contrast to the almost 12 per cent increase in the last three years under Labor,” he said.
“Under Labor’s last term, WorkCover Queensland’s average premium rate increased from $1.20 to $1.343 per $100 of wages, after discounts.
“Our focus will always be on supporting injured workers recover and get back to work while providing certainty for businesses, not fake claims aimed at ripping off the system.”
Under the Workers’ Compensation and Rehabilitation Act, workers’ compensation insurers (including WorkCover Queensland) must inform the Workers’ Compensation Regulator if they suspect certain offences – including fraud, giving false and misleading information and claims farming – are being or have been committed.
Originally published as Qld bosses turn to PIs to expose alleged WorkCover fraud
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