Failure of the employer to secure payment of compensation as provided in LC 3700 is which of the following?

• A. Prima facie evidence of willfulness
• B. Evidence of compliance
• C. A minor administrative error
• D. A procedural defect

Answer: (A)

Failure to secure payment of compensation under Labor Code 3700 triggers a presumption of willful noncompliance. “Prima facie” means on the face of it, the fact of not obtaining coverage is enough, unless the employer can show evidence to rebut that inference. In other words, the law treats the failure as evidence that the employer deliberately avoided meeting the requirement to provide workers’ compensation coverage, rather than a mere accidental lapse. This makes willfulness the default interpretation of the conduct, subject to challenge only if the employer can demonstrate that the noncompliance was not willful (for example, that coverage was actually secured or that the lapse was not intentional). The other options describe outcomes that don’t fit this scenario: it isn’t evidence of compliance, a minor administrative error, or a procedural defect.