For injured workers
Hurt at work and your employer had no workers' comp? You can still get paid.
Discovering your employer never carried workers' compensation is frightening — but it does not leave you without options. New York built the Uninsured Employers Fund exactly for this, and because your employer broke the law, you may actually have more ways to recover, not fewer.
- You can still file a claim and receive the same benefits — medical care, lost wages, permanency — as any injured worker.
- If no insurer is responsible, the Board assigns the Uninsured Employers Fund (UEF) to pay you.
- Because the employer was illegally uninsured, you may instead sue the employer directly in civil court — with their legal defenses stripped (WCL §11).
- File anyway. "My boss had no insurance" is never a reason not to file.
How a claim against an uninsured employer works
File your claim the normal way
Get medical care and file the Employee Claim (Form C-3) just as you would for any work injury — the same 30-day-notice and 2-year deadlines apply. See how to file.
The Board looks for a responsible insurer
It checks whether any carrier covered your employer. If it can't identify one within about 30 days, it moves your case to the Uninsured Employers Fund.
The UEF steps in as the payer
The UEF pays your medical treatment and lost-wage benefits the way an insurance carrier would. Your benefit amount is calculated the same way — two-thirds of your average weekly wage × your disability percentage, capped at the state maximum.
The state pursues your employer
The UEF and the Board then go after the uninsured employer for reimbursement plus penalties. That's the state's fight, not yours — your benefits don't wait on it.
Expect the UEF route to add some delay while the Board confirms there's no carrier. Keep every medical record and pay stub, and stay in contact with the Board.
Your extra option: sue the employer directly
Normally the "exclusive remedy" rule blocks you from suing your employer — workers' comp is your only route. But an employer who failed to carry legally-required coverage loses that protection (WCL §11). That gives you a choice most injured workers don't have:
Workers' comp via the UEF
No need to prove fault, faster, and it covers medical care for life if needed. But it's limited to comp benefits — no payment for pain and suffering.
A civil negligence lawsuit
You can sue the uninsured employer in court, where they can't use the usual defenses (contributory negligence, assumption of risk, fellow-servant). A lawsuit can include pain and suffering — but you must prove negligence, it takes longer, and it's only worthwhile if the employer has assets to collect from.
What if they call you an "independent contractor"?
Employers who skip coverage often claim their workers are contractors. It usually doesn't hold up. The Board looks at the real working relationship, not a 1099 — and in construction and commercial trucking the law presumes you're an employee unless strict tests are met. If you were misclassified, you're still covered. See who counts as an employee.