New York: Videotape of Claimant’s Activities Leads to Disqualification from Benefits

A New York appellate court affirmed a finding by the state’s Workers’ Compensation Board that claimant violated N.Y. Workers’ Comp. Law § 114-a by misrepresenting her work activity while receiving benefits. At a hearing, claimant testified that she had not worked for anyone in any capacity during the time following her 2010 injury. The carrier subsequently presented surveillance videos and a written report prepared by a private investigator showing that during the relevant time period, claimant left her home, drove to a chiropractor’s office, and remaining there for several hours. In the video, claimant was also shown wearing a uniform bearing that office’s logo. Still later, she was shown running errands with what appeared to be a co-worker and then returning to the office. The court indicated the surveillance videos and report constituted substantial evidence supporting the Board’s determination that claimant was working after her 2010 injury and concealed her employment for the purposes of receiving benefits.

Thomas A. Robinson, J.D., the Feature National Columnist for the LexisNexis Workers’ Compensation eNewsletter, is a leading commentator and expert on the law of workers’ compensation.

LexisNexis Online Subscribers: Citations below link to Lexis Advance. Bracketed citations link to lexis.com.

See Schuss v. Delta Airlines, Inc., 2014 N.Y. App. LEXIS 5606 (Aug. 7, 2014) [2014 N.Y. App. LEXIS 5606 (Aug. 7, 2014)]

See generally Larson’s Workers’ Compensation Law, § 39.03 [39.03]

Source: Larson’s Workers’ Compensation Law, the nation’s leading authority on workers’ compensation law.

For more information about LexisNexis products and solutions connect with us through our corporate site