Internal Security (Civilian Injuries Compensation) Regulations

Internal Security Act

(Chapter 143, Section 72)

Internal Security (Civilian Injuries Compensation) Regulations¹

¹Extended to Singapore by the Modification of Laws (Internal Security and Public Order) (Singapore) Order 1963 — L.N. 231 of 16.9.63

Rg 1

G.N. No. S 193/1960

REVISED EDITION 1990

(25th March 1992)

[16th September 1963]

Citation

1. These Regulations may be cited as the Internal Security (Civilian Injuries Compensation) Regulations.

Definitions

2. In these Regulations, unless the context otherwise requires —

“Board” means the Compensation Board appointed by the Minister for Finance under regulation 3;

“compensation authority” means the Compensation Officer or the Board, as the case may require;

“gainfully occupied adult” means a person not below the age of 12 years who is engaged on the date of receiving any injury in any trade, profession, office, employment or vocation and wholly or substantially dependent thereon for a livelihood or, who, though temporarily unemployed on the date of receiving any injury, is normally so engaged or dependent;

“injury” means any injury, fatal or otherwise, sustained by any person within Singapore by any means whatsoever which, in the opinion of the compensation authority, was caused in a security area, as a direct result of and was attributable to the declaration of such an area as a security area by proclamation under section 48 of the Act;

“wages” includes any privilege or benefit which is capable of being estimated in money but does not include —

(a)	a travelling allowance;
(b)	the value of any travelling concession;
(c)	any contribution paid by an employer of a workman towards any pension or provident fund; or
(d)	a sum paid to a workman to cover any special expenses entailed by the nature of his employment.

Appointment of Compensation Board and Compensation Officer

3. For the purposes of these Regulations the Minister for Finance shall appoint —

(a)	a Compensation Board to consist of a president and 4 members appointed by name or by office, of whom the president and any two members shall constitute a quorum; and
(b)	a Compensation Officer.

Award of compensation

4.—(1) The dependant or dependants of any gainfully occupied adult who has died as a result of an injury or any person who has received an injury may make a claim under these Regulations to the Compensation Officer.

(2) The Compensation Officer may, in his discretion, after considering any claim under these Regulations, award to any claimant an ex gratia payment of compensation in accordance with these Regulations. Any compensation so awarded may be paid from the Consolidated Fund.

Appeal to Board

5.—(1) Any claimant dissatisfied with any award made by the Compensation Officer may appeal to the Board. The decision of the Board on any such appeal shall be final.

(2) All orders and notices issued under the hand of the president of the Board shall be deemed to have been issued by the Board.

(3) The proceedings of the Board shall be judicial proceedings and members of the Board shall be public servants within the meaning of the Penal Code (Cap. 224).

Method of assessment of compensation

6.—(1) Subject to the provisions of these Regulations, the amount of compensation which may be awarded by the compensation authority to any claimant shall not exceed —

(a)

in the case of a gainfully occupied adult —

(i)	where death results from the injury, a sum equal to 36 months’ wages calculated at the rate of earnings of the deceased immediately prior to his death, or, if he was not employed at the date of his death, at his last rate of earnings, or $7,200, whichever is less;
(ii)	where permanent total disablement results from the injury, a sum equal to 48 months’ wages or $9,600, whichever is less;
(iii)	where permanent partial disablement results from the injury, a percentage of the amount which might be awarded for total disablement calculated on the percentage of loss of earning capacity caused by the injury; or
(iv)	where temporary disablement, whether total or partial, results from the injury, a half monthly payment of $50 or of a sum equal to one-third of the claimant’s monthly wages, whichever is less, payable during disablement or a period of 5 years, whichever period is shorter;

(b)

in the case of a person other than a gainfully occupied adult —

(i)	where permanent total disablement results from the injury, a sum of $9,600;
(ii)	where permanent partial disablement results from the injury, a percentage of the amount which might be awarded for total disablement calculated on the degree of partial disablement; or
(iii)	where temporary disablement, whether total or partial, results from the injury, a half monthly payment of $25 payable during disablement or a period of 5 years, whichever period is shorter.

(2) No compensation shall be paid in respect of the death of any person who at the date of the injury was not a gainfully occupied adult.

Medical examination

7. Every person making a claim under these Regulations in respect of an injury shall be examined by a medical officer appointed by the Compensation Officer for that purpose. The report of the medical officer on the injury and the degree of disablement resulting therefrom shall be final.

Consideration affecting assessment of compensation

8. The compensation authority in assessing and awarding any compensation under these Regulations shall take into account —

(a)	the number of persons dependent upon a deceased or injured person; and
(b)	the general financial position of the dependants of any deceased person in respect of whom a claim is made or of any injured person who is a claimant under these Regulations:

Provided that the compensation authority shall not make an award of any compensation under these Regulations for the death of or injuries to any person in respect of whom compensation may be claimed under any written law relating to workmen’s compensation in force in Singapore.

Minimum period of incapacity to qualify for compensation

9. No award of compensation shall be made in respect of any injury unless the incapacity caused by such injury lasts for not less than 7 consecutive days.

Additional awards for treatment of injuries

10. In addition to awarding payment to any injured person of an ex gratia payment of compensation, the compensation authority may make an additional payment to any injured person to enable that person to obtain treatment for his injury whether the treatment shall be obtained within or outside Singapore.

Hospital treatment

11. Any injured person who is awarded an ex gratia payment of compensation under these Regulations may be required to undergo treatment, which shall be free, at a Government hospital, if, in the opinion of the compensation authority, his condition so permits and if accommodation at that hospital is available.

Payment of awards

12. Any amount of compensation awarded to the representative or dependants of any deceased person or to any injured person may be paid in a lump sum or by instalments and may be paid under such terms and conditions as the compensation authority may impose.

No right to sue for and variation of compensation

13. No award made by the compensation authority shall vest any right in any person to sue for, or claim by any other means all or any part of such award, and an award by the compensation authority may be varied by the Minister for Finance after reference to the Board at any time, but not retrospectively so as to enable any compensation already paid to any person to be recovered, unless the payment was made as a result of fraud or mistake induced by the person receiving the compensation or any other person on his behalf.

Time limit for intimating claims

14. Except in so far as the Minister for Finance may otherwise direct with respect to any particular case or class of cases, no claim shall be considered by the compensation authority, unless it shall have been made within 3 months of the date of the occurrence of the injury, whether the injury did or did not result in death, whichever is the later.

Persons not eligible to claim

15.—(1) No member of the armed forces or of a visiting force within the meaning of the Visiting Forces Act (Cap. 344), and no dependant of any such member shall be entitled to make any claim under these Regulations in respect of any injury to, or, in the case of a dependant, in respect of the death of, that member.

(2) No public officer and no member of any local force established under any written law, and no dependant of any such officer or member, who is eligible to receive under the provisions of any other written law any pension, allowance, gratuity (other than gratuity, if any, approved under section 16 of the Pensions Act (Cap. 225), compensation or other financial award in respect of any injury, shall be paid any compensation under these Regulations in respect of the same injury.

Evidence and production of documents

16. Notwithstanding the provisions of any written law to the contrary, the compensation authority may call upon any person to give evidence or to produce any documents as the compensation authority may require.

Penalty for refusing or delaying to give evidence or produce documents

17. Any person who refuses or delays to give evidence or to produce any documents before the compensation authority shall be guilty of an offence and shall be liable on conviction to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 2 years or to a fine not exceeding $2,000.

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