If your employer refuses to report the accident
Reporting a work accident is not optional for your employer, and you do not need their cooperation to protect your claim. MOM sets a hard reporting deadline for employers, treats non-payment as an offence, and gives you a direct route to alert MOM yourself if your employer is stalling, denying the accident happened, or simply ignoring it.
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Most useful for senior and management-level roles and larger claims.
Step 1 of 2
Your employer's legal duty
Under the Ministry of Manpower's rules, your employer must submit an incident report within 10 days of being notified of a non-fatal accident (any accident where you were hospitalised, or given MC or light duty). For a fatal accident, the Ministry of Manpower must be told as soon as possible and the report filed within 10 days of the accident date. Separately, your employer is required to keep paying your medical leave wages "by the next payday upon receiving the original MCs," and, per the Ministry of Manpower, to pay or reimburse medical expenses within 14 days of receiving the original bills. None of this depends on your employer agreeing that the claim is valid; the reporting duty exists independently of how strong the claim turns out to be, and it is a separate obligation from whether a claim exists at all: for accidents from 1 September 2020, the Ministry of Manpower deems your claim made once your employer, a supervisor, or someone your employer designated for the purpose has notice of the accident, or your employer otherwise learns of it by any means. Your employer's refusal to file its own report does not undo that.
What to do
- Put the report request in writingAsk your employer, in writing (email or message), to confirm the accident has been reported to MOM. This creates a record even if they do not reply.
- Alert the Ministry of Manpower directlyThe Ministry of Manpower's own guidance tells employees to alert it if their employer does not pay medical bills or medical leave wages, or does not report a serious injury.
- File your own incident reportYou can make an incident report yourself so the Ministry of Manpower is informed independently of whether your employer ever files one.
- Keep every documentOriginal medical certificates, bills, messages to your employer, and dates. If the claim is later disputed, this is the evidence that supports your side.
- Know your claim already existsYour employer's refusal does not stop the claim: the Ministry of Manpower deems it made once your employer has notice of the accident. The separate 1-year window to decide between WICA and common law still runs from the accident date regardless of your employer's conduct. See the WICA time limit for the full picture.
If your employer is a foreign-worker employer and you are worried about your work pass status while this plays out, read work injury compensation for foreign workers, which covers what happens to your claim if the pass is cancelled.
The penalty for not paying
Once the Ministry of Manpower has been notified of your accident, whether by your employer or by you directly, you receive a notification letter by post with a case reference number you can use to check your claim's status. If a Notice of Assessment or Notice of Computation is later issued and someone disputes it, see what to do if your WICA claim is disputed or rejected.
Case review
Employer stonewalling your claim? Get matched with a law firm
Tell us what happened. Your enquiry comes to the Work Rights SG team and we read every one. We do not have a referral arrangement with a law firm in place at the moment, so we are not passing enquiries to anyone.
Not every case needs a lawyer. This is most useful if you were in a senior or management role, or the money at stake is substantial. For straightforward cases the free MOM and TADM route these guides describe usually gets there on its own.
Frequently asked questions
Can my employer just refuse to report my work accident?
No, not lawfully. The Ministry of Manpower requires an employer to submit an incident report within 10 days of being notified of a non-fatal accident, or within 10 days of a fatal one, and failing to pay compensation is a separate offence carrying a fine of up to $15,000 or jail up to 12 months, or both. A duty on your employer is not the same as a guarantee, which is why the steps below do not depend on their cooperation.
What should I do if my employer will not report the accident?
Alert the Ministry of Manpower yourself. Its guidance to employees says to alert it if your employer does not pay your medical bills or medical leave wages, or does not inform it of your condition for a serious injury, and you can make your own incident report so the Ministry of Manpower is independently aware.
Does my employer's refusal to report stop my compensation claim from existing?
No. For accidents from 1 September 2020, the Ministry of Manpower deems your claim made once your employer first has notice of the accident, meaning you or someone you told, not once your employer actually files anything with the Ministry of Manpower. Their refusal to report is a separate offence on their part, not a reason your claim has not started. It does still matter for the WICA-versus-common-law decision, which runs on its own 1-year clock from the accident date regardless of your employer's conduct.
What if my employer says it will pay me directly instead of filing a claim?
Be cautious. An informal payment outside the WICA process is not the same as your legal entitlement, has no NOA or NOC behind it, and does not protect you if your condition worsens later. The Ministry of Manpower's process exists precisely so the amount is independently set, not negotiated case by case.
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