Truck driver sentenced over workers compensation fraud
03 May 2024•BlueSafe Team•Source: WorkSafe VIC
A truck driver who continued receiving workers compensation while concealing his return to work has been sentenced after pleading guilty to dishonestly obtaining financial advantage by deception.
Simon Stott, 57, was sentenced at Echuca Magistrates' Court on Wednesday 24 April on one charge. He was also ordered to pay $2000 in costs.
The court heard Stott suffered serious injuries in a crash in 2014 while working as an interstate truck driver. He subsequently began receiving weekly workers compensation payments.
An investigation established that Stott earned about $55,000 driving trucks for five transport companies between February 2017 and August 2018. During that period, he continued telling his GP, insurer and an independent medical examiner that he had not resumed work.
The fraud came to light in December 2018 following a social media post by Stott about a new interstate driving role.
Return to Work Victoria Executive Director Jason Lardelli said such dishonesty had no excuse. "Our workers compensation scheme is there to help those who genuinely need it to support their recovery and return to work," Mr Lardelli said.
"The Victorian public expects us to safeguard these funds and those who actively seek to defraud the system by using it for personal gain will be held to account."