The Recovery of Health Services Charges (Reviews and Appeals) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2007

Explanatory Note

(This note is not part of the Regulations)

The Recovery of Health Services Charges (Northern Ireland) Order 2006 provides for a scheme for the recovery of charges in cases where an injured person who receives a compensation payment in respect of his injury has received health services hospital treatment or ambulance services. The charges are specified in certificates issued by the Department for Social Development, and are payable by persons who pay compensation to the injured person.

A person to whom a certificate is issued may appeal against the certificate, provided he pays beforehand the amounts specified in the certificate or the Department waives the requirement to pay. The person may also appeal against the Department’s decision whether to waive the requirement to pay (“the waiver decision”).

The regulations make provision—

(a) for the circumstances and timing of reviews by the Department of certificates (regulation 2);

(b) for the Department to inform a person to whom a certificate is issued of particulars relating to appeals against certificates (regulation 3);

(c) as to the manner and timing of applying for a waiver of the requirement in Article 9(2)(b) to pay the amount specified in the certificate before appealing against the certificate and for appealing a waiver decision (regulation 4);

(d) as to the manner and timing of appealing against a certificate (regulation 5);

(e) for general matters relating to appeals against waiver decisions or certificates (regulation 6);

(f) as to the grounds on which, and manner by which, an application can be made for an extension of the time limits for making an appeal against a waiver decision or certificate (regulation 7);

(g) for the application of certain provisions (modified appropriately) of the Social Security Regulations relating to procedural matters of the appeal tribunal to appeals against waiver decisions and certificates (regulation 8);

(h) for the consolidation of appeals against certificates relating to the same injury (regulation 9).