Chapter 152

Section 50. Whenever payments of any kind are not made within sixty days of being claimed by an employee, dependent or other party, and an order or decision requires that such payments be made, interest at the rate of ten percent per annum of all sums due from the date of the rec…

Section 51. Whenever an employee is injured under circumstances entitling him to compensation, if it be established that the injured employee was of such age and experience when injured that, under natural conditions, in the open labor market, his wage would be expected to increa…

Section 51A. In any claim in which no compensation has been paid prior to the final decision on such claim, said final decision shall take into consideration the compensation provided by statute on the date of the decision, rather than the date of the injury.

Section 52B. All premiums and interest charges on account of policies insuring the payment of the compensation provided for by this chapter which may be due from an employer to any insurance company authorized to transact the business of workers' compensation insurance in this co…

Section 52C. (a) A corporation, an unincorporated association, a partnership, or an individual, located within this commonwealth may make application to the commissioner of insurance, hereinafter and in sections fifty-two D to fifty-two F, inclusive, called the commissioner, for …

Section 52D. Any member of or subscriber to a rating organization may appeal to the commissioner from the action or decision of such rating organization in approving or rejecting any proposed change in or addition to the filings of such rating organization and the commissioner sh…

Section 52E. Any person or organization wilfully violating any provision of section fifty-two, fifty-two C or fifty-two D shall be punished by a fine of not more than five hundred dollars for each such violation. Such penalty may be in addition to any other penalty provided by la…

Section 52F. (a) Any insurer or rating organization aggrieved by any order or decision of the commissioner made without a hearing may, within thirty days after notice of the order to the insurer or organization, make written request to the commissioner for a hearing thereon. The …

Section 52G. If any section, subsection, subdivision, paragraph, sentence or clause of said sections fifty-two C to fifty-two F, inclusive, is held invalid or unconstitutional, such decision shall not affect the remaining portions of said sections.

Section 53. Any mutual liability insurance company authorized to do business in this commonwealth may with the approval of the commissioner of insurance distribute its risks into groups in accordance with the nature of the business and the degree of the liability of injury and wi…

Section 53A. (1) Any insurance company authorized to transact business in this commonwealth under subclause (b) or (e) of clause Sixth of section forty-seven of chapter one hundred and seventy-five may, except as provided in clause (c) of section fifty-four of said chapter one hu…

Section 54A. Every contract or agreement the purpose of which is to insure an employer in whole or in part against liability on account of injury or death of an employee, other than seasonal or casual farm laborers, and seasonal or casual or part-time domestic servants who work i…

Section 55. No policy of workers' compensation insurance shall be issued or delivered until a copy thereof has been filed with the commissioner of insurance at least thirty days prior to such issue or delivery, unless before the expiration of the thirty days the said commissioner…

Section 55A. Notwithstanding any general or special law to the contrary, a mid-term notice of cancellation of a workers' compensation policy shall be effective only if based on one or more of the following reasons: (i) nonpayment of premium; (ii) fraud or material misrepresentati…

Section 56. Two or more insurance companies authorized to issue such insurance policies in the commonwealth may unite in issuing joint and several workers' compensation policies which may be headed by the names of all such companies. Such policies shall be subject to approval by …

Section 57. The commissioner of insurance may, whenever he deems it expedient, by a written order in such form as he may prescribe, require a domestic insurance company to deposit with the state treasurer the present value, as computed by him under section fifty-eight, of all or …

Section 58. The commissioner of insurance shall compute the present value of outstanding claims on the basis of information furnished by the division, and shall assume a rate of interest not higher than four per cent.

Section 59. The state treasurer shall hold any deposit made under section fifty-seven in trust for the payment of claims for benefits under this chapter, including claims accruing after the deposit was made, and he shall make such payments upon the written request and under the d…

Section 6. Within seven calendar days, not including Sundays and legal holidays, of receipt of notice of any injury alleged to have arisen out of and in the course of employment which incapacitates an employee from earning full wages for a period of five or more calendar days, th…

Section 60. The appointment of a receiver of a domestic company under section six of chapter one hundred and seventy-five shall not affect any order of the said commissioner or deposit made under section fifty-seven prior to such appointment, and the state treasurer or trustee ap…

Section 60A. Any company aggrieved by any order of the said commissioner made under section fifty-seven may, within five days from the date of its receipt, file a petition in the supreme judicial court for the county of Suffolk for a review thereof; but the filing of such a petit…

Section 60B. A company making a deposit under section fifty-seven shall pay to the state treasurer a reasonable amount for the expenses of his office, attributable to the custody and disbursement of the deposit. Any such amount may, upon written application of the state treasurer…

Section 60C. Failure of a company to comply with any lawful order of the commissioner of insurance under section fifty-seven shall, without any further action by the said commissioner, terminate its authority to issue policies of workers' compensation insurance, and in such a cas…

Section 60D. Any company failing to comply with any lawful order of the commissioner under section fifty-seven shall, in addition, forfeit one hundred dollars for each day of its default. Any forfeiture recovered under this section shall be paid to the state treasurer and shall b…

Section 61. Every foreign insurance company transacting the business of workers' compensation insurance in the commonwealth shall furnish a bond running to the commonwealth, with some surety company authorized to transact business in the commonwealth as surety, for such term and …

Section 62. Every such foreign insurance company shall, within five days after its withdrawal from the transaction of business in the commonwealth or after the revocation of its license issued by the commissioner of insurance or of his refusal to renew it, deposit with a trustee …

Section 63. Insurance companies insuring employees under this chapter shall, at the request of the department, furnish it in writing any information required in connection with the administration by said department of this chapter, including any statistics and the names of all em…

Section 64. The insurer shall make and enforce reasonable rules and regulations for the prevention of injuries on the premises of insured persons, and for this purpose inspectors of the insurer shall have free access to all such premises during regular working hours. Insured pers…

Section 65. (1) There is hereby established a special revenue fund in the state treasury, known as the Workers' Compensation Special Fund, the proceeds of which may be expended by the department, subject to appropriation, for the operating expenses of the department. (2) There is…

Section 65A. (1) Any employer whose application for workers' compensation insurance has been rejected or not accepted within five days by two insurers may appeal to the commissioner of insurance and if it shall appear that such employer has complied with or will comply substantia…

Section 65B. If, after the issuance of a policy under section sixty-five A, it shall appear that the employer to whom the policy was issued is not or has ceased to be entitled to such insurance, the insurer may cancel or otherwise terminate such policy in the manner provided in t…

Section 65C. (1) All losses incurred under policies issued to employers under section sixty-five A shall be equitably distributed among all insurers authorized to transact and transacting workers' compensation insurance in the commonwealth. Such distribution of losses shall be ef…

Section 65D. By arrangement between insurers which are members of the reinsurance pool, and with the approval of the commissioner of insurance, an insurer referred to in section sixty-five C may issue a policy to an employer who had been assigned by the commissioner of his design…

Section 65G. The words ''Losses incurred,'' as used in section sixty-five C shall mean, with respect to each policy, the losses paid and estimated to be paid thereunder. Any dispute as to the amounts to be paid under section sixty-five C, or as to an assignment under section sixt…

Section 65H. Provision may be made under the plan of operation established under section sixty-five C for the subsequent adjustment of payments originally made on behalf of assigned risks on the basis of estimated losses incurred.

Section 65I. Nothing in sections sixty-five A to sixty-five M, inclusive, shall be construed to affect, in any way, the primary liability of the insurer to which the risk is assigned to pay compensation benefits in accordance with the provisions of this chapter.

Section 65J. At any time while a policy issued pursuant to section sixty-five A is in force, the insurer, upon its own initiative, may make a careful inspection of the risk for the purpose of measuring the hazards, making recommendations for the health and safety of employees, an…

Section 65K. Any employer to whom a policy is issued pursuant to section sixty-five A may appeal, within sixty days after the effective date of such policy, to the commissioner of insurance on the ground that the premium charged upon such policy is not reasonable or is unfairly d…

Section 65L. If an insurer refuses or neglects to comply with any provision of sections sixty-five A to sixty-five K, inclusive, or with any lawful order or ruling made by the commissioner of insurance pursuant thereto, he shall issue an order to such insurer to show cause why it…

Section 65M. Any employer or insurer aggrieved by any order or ruling of the division or of the commissioner of insurance under any provision of sections sixty-five A to sixty-five L, inclusive, may, within thirty days after notice thereof, and despite any different limitation of…

Section 65O. Any employer to whom an insurer is assigned under the provisions of section sixty-five A shall be entitled to designate any licensed insurance agent or insurance broker to assist him in dealing with said insurer to which he is assigned and with the reinsurance pool d…

Section 66. Actions brought against employers to recover damages for personal injuries or consequential damages sustained within or without the commonwealth by an employee in the course of his employment or for death resulting from personal injury so sustained shall be commenced …

Section 67. Section sixty-six shall not apply to actions to recover damages for personal injuries received by employees of an insured person or a self-insurer. Paragraph 4 of said section sixty-six shall not apply to actions to recover damages for personal injuries sustained by a…

Section 68. Chapter one hundred and fifty-three and sections two B and six C to six F, inclusive, of chapter two hundred and twenty-nine shall not apply to employees of an insured person or a self-insurer, nor to laborers, workmen or mechanics employed by the commonwealth or any …

Section 69. The commonwealth and any county, city, town or district having the power of taxation which has accepted chapter eight hundred and seven of the acts of nineteen hundred and thirteen, and any town or district having the power of taxation which accepts the provisions of …

Section 69B. Payments of compensation, or payments of medical or other expenses or fees by the commonwealth under this chapter shall be made only upon vouchers bearing the certification of the personnel administrator. Said personnel administrator shall make or shall cause to be m…

Section 6A. Upon receipt of notice of injury from the employer, or any other indication of a compensable injury, the division of administration shall immediately mail, post paid, to the injured worker an informational brochure as prescribed by the division which sets forth in cle…

Section 6B. Any proceeds resulting from the imposition of any fine levied under this chapter shall be paid into the Special Revenue Fund, established pursuant to section sixty-five.

Section 7. (1) Within fourteen days of an insurer's receipt of an employer's first report of injury, or an initial written claim for weekly benefits on a form prescribed by the department, whichever is received first, the insurer shall either commence payment of weekly benefits u…

Section 70. Procedure under sections sixty-nine to seventy-five, inclusive, and the jurisdiction of the department shall be the same as under sections one to sixty-eight, inclusive, and the commonwealth or such county, city, town or district shall have the same rights in proceedi…