CORRECTION: WTC-12 Form Filing by September 13th Cannot be Done by Fax!

Don’t fax WTC-12 forms to the New York State Workers’ Compensation Board!  This is not sufficient and you may lose your protections.

After filing our post last night urging all rescue, recovery and cleanup workers to file their WTC12 forms by 9/13/2010, I got this important and nice reply from a representative of the New York Workers’ Compensation Board:

"I saw your posting this morning announcing you will provide free notary and faxing services for World Trade Center workers to file a WTC-12. While I applaud your efforts, I just want to make certain you know that we [ the Workers’ Compensation Board ] must receive the original, signed and notarized WTC-12 by September 13. A faxed copy is not sufficient." [emphasis added].

In addition, the Board directed us to the following helpful WTC-12 information: 

The Board must receive the original, signed and notarized WTC-12 by Monday, Sept. 13. Board staff will be available in New York City metropolitan area offices to assist in completing and filing the forms. Faxing, e-mailing, and simply mailing it or postmarking it by that date is not sufficient. While the statute has a Sept. 11 deadline, the law extends any deadline to the following Monday when it falls on a Saturday or Sunday. Therefore, the Board will accept all WTC-12 forms that are received on or before Monday, Sept. 13. The Board will update and relaunch its Tell Us You Were There radio and television commercials, with former New York Yankee Bernie Williams, later this month to promote awareness.

Sorry for the mistake and we hope this does not cause any confusion on the part of those who should still file the WTC-12 form. We will continue to offer free Notary services for the WTC-12 form by appointment, but we cannot offer faxing services since this is not legally sufficient to protect your rights. Feel free to call with any questions at 1-877-NY-DBLAW  x123.