What to know about Industrial Injuries Disablement Benefit

The most important thing for any individual to be aware of is that a claim cannot be made if you were self-employed. Nevertheless, for all other employees it may be possible to claim Industrial Injuries Disablement Benefit (IIDB) if the disability or illness was caused by a workplace accident or an occupational disease. This includes those who may have been disabled or become ill whilst on an approved employment course or training scheme.

Although the eventual award amount will depend on individual circumstances, the assessment scale is applied by a “medical advisor” and – on a scale of 1 to 100 percent in terms of disability – a claimant must be assessed as having at least a 14 percent disability in order to be able to access the benefit payment.

Eligibility depends upon the circumstances under which the injury or disability occurred, which must have been in England, Wales or Scotland, but covers those who were employed when the accident or incident occurred or – as has been previously mentioned – on an approved employment training scheme at the time. There are exceptions to these requirements, but these are available at regional Industrial Injuries Disablement Benefit centres.

IIDB can also be claimed if a disease that was caused by the work itself manifests. These illnesses include, yet are not limited to, asthma, deafness, bronchitis or emphysema, pneumoconiosis and a number of asbestos-associated diseases such as diffuse mesothelioma and primary carcinomas.

Claiming the benefit involves filling in form BI100A (accidents) or form BI100PD (diseases). These forms are available to download or can be collected from an Industrial Injuries Disablement Benefit Centre. If any circumstances change, it is important that the nominated office dealing with the claim is notified as soon as possible, particularly as there are other benefits that a claimant of Industrial Injuries Disablement Benefit may be entitled to.

Source: Gov.uk, “Industrial Injuries Disablement Benefit,” Oct. 9, 2014