If the Director of Industrial Relations determines that a private self-insured ER has failed to pay required benefits, he/she may:

• A. Refer the issue of non-payment to the WCAB.
• B. Utilize the self-insured security deposit to administer and pay the ER's obligations.
• C. Refer the issue of non-payment to the Superior Ct for a Writ of Mandate.
• D. Utilize the self-insured security deposit if the Self-Insurers' Security Fund refuses to pay benefits.

Answer: (A)

When a private self-insured employer is found not to have paid required workers’ compensation benefits, the proper route is to refer the matter to the Workers’ Compensation Appeals Board. The WCAB has the authority to adjudicate disputes over benefit payments, issue orders for payment, and enforce those orders, making it the appropriate forum to compel compliance and collect overdue benefits. The self-insured security deposit and the Self-Insurers’ Security Fund exist as funding safeguards to ensure benefits are paid, but they are not the mechanism for directing the employer’s ongoing obligations in this enforcement context. A Writ of Mandate is not the usual tool to obtain payment of benefits from a private self-insurer; it would be used to compel action by a public agency or review a WCAB decision, not to initiate the collection of unpaid benefits.