A range of benefits, pensions, rebates and allowances are available.

Centrelink provides a number of federal government programs.

• Disability Support Pension: The Disability Support Pension is paid to people who cannot work because of their disability. Eligibility is assessed according to assets, income and work ability.
• Sickness Allowance: In the period before Disability Support Pension is paid, Sickness Benefit is payable.
• Newstart Allowance: If a person with disability is assessed as able to work but has not been able to find a job, he may be able to receive the Newstart Allowance.
• Mobility Allowance: The Mobility Allowance is payable to people with disabilities to offset the cost of travelling to work, training, volunteering or job search activities. It is not means tested, but recipients must be involved in those activities 8 hours per week.
• Pensioner Education Supplement: for people who are studying to help with education expenses.
• Pensioner Concession Card: Holders of the Pensioner Concession Card are entitled to medicines at a reduced cost as well as other concessions.
• Health Care Card: Holders of the Health Care Card are entitled to medicines at a reduced cost as well as other concessions.

Medical Energy Rebates

People with spinal cord injury and some other conditions such as multiple sclerosis and Parkinson’s disease cannot properly regulate their core body temperature. That means they have additional energy costs for heating and cooling their homes year-round. 

In NSW, the Medical Energy Rebate will help cover those costs. Eligible customers will be able to apply for the rebate by contacting their energy retailer directly. The rebate of $130 annually will be automatically deducted from quarterly power bills.

Other states have similar schemes:

Qld. The Medical Cooling and Heating Electricity Commission Scheme.

Victoria. The Medical Cooling Concession.

See our Travel, Transport and Accommodation page for information about financial assistance for accessible permanent accommodation.

See our Travel and Transport page for information on “Assistance with transport costs”

See our Equipment and Technology and Continence care pages for information on the equipment schemes which provide access to a range of equipment for eligible people.

There is no direct funding for one-off expenses such as purchasing household items, car repair etc. However there are some possibilities for assistance:

Centrelink pensioners can get an advance payment of their benefit. This is recovered, interest-free, from their payments over the next 13 fortnights. An advance payment can only be paid once in any 12 month period. However, the advance can be paid in two separate instalments.

No-interest loans (NILS) are available from a number of community groups and charities. The loans are generally for amounts of $600–$1000 for such items as a washing machine, fridge or medical appliance. Loans are repaid over 12–15 months. For more information and to locate a NILS program in your area go to the Good Shepherd website. It has a map of Australia where you can click on your State to locate the NILS program in your area.

Information is available from Centrelink Disability Services ph: 132717 or download its Are You Leaving Australia? factsheet. The factsheet outlines general rules for each of the different payment types. There may be other factors specific to individual circumstances that may affect the payment of a pension or allowance outside Australia.

ParaQuad NSW's Golden Stave Foundation offers scholarships to provide opportunities for young people under 25 with a spinal cord injury to undertake further study. See here for more information on the program.

See our links to the Disability Service Standards and relevant legislation.

A signature is a common way of confirming a person's acceptance of a contract or arrangement but is not always necessary to create a binding legal document.

1. Making your own mark

If you can't make a signature with a pen you may show your acceptance of a contract or other document (including a deed depending on which country, state or territory you are located in) by leaving a mark such as:

• your initials;
• a rubber stamp; or
• an ink thumbprint.

If you use a mark instead of a signature on a document, you should have someone witness you making the mark to prove that you have accepted the terms and conditions of the document and to ensure that the use of your mark is not abused by another person.  If the document is a deed, in certain jurisdictions you must have a witness if you use a mark.

The person who witnesses you making the mark should not be a party to the document or a witness for the other party.

 After your witness has watched you mark the document, they should write on the bottom of the document that:

• you are unable to sign the document;
• you appeared to read and approve the document; and
• you marked the document in their presence.

You should seek legal advice about what is required for particular documents as the way you can agree to the document without signing and the number of witnesses you need changes according to the nature of the document and the state or territory you are in.

2. Can someone sign a document on my behalf?

You can authorise someone to sign documents on your behalf by appointing them as your attorney under a Power of Attorney.

A Power of Attorney allows you to give another person the power to manage your assets and financial affairs while you are alive.  You can limit the powers you give to your attorney, for example, only to deal with certain bank accounts or limit when they can act.

Your Power of Attorney can be revoked (cancelled) at any time provided you understand what you are doing in revoking your Power of Attorney.

If you are considering making a Power of Attorney, you should seek legal advice first.

For some documents in some states a person who is not your Power of Attorney may sign a document on your behalf.

However, if someone signs a document on your behalf and the law says that only your attorney under your Power of Attorney may sign on your behalf, then that signature will have no effect.

Generally, it is better to make a mark yourself or appoint an attorney than to allow someone to sign on your behalf.

Please note that this only applies to people who are physically disabled and who do not have reduced mental capacity.

This advice has been prepared by Blake Dawson. It is general information only and should not be relied on as advice on how to execute a particular document. If you need to validly execute a legal document you should seek specific advice on that document as requirements vary according to the document and the State or Territory in which you are executing the document.

There are many places where you can get free legal advice. Some of these services may also be able to represent you depending on your income and assets, the type of legal problem you have and your chances of success in resolving your problem through the law.

LawAccess NSW is a government service that provides free legal advice and information and referrals to people in NSW over the phone, and is often a good place to start. LawAccess cannot act for you in your matter but can tell you whether it is a problem the law can help with, give you general legal advice and tell you who may be able to assist you. You can contact LawAccess NSW on 1300 888 529.

Legal Aid NSW will provide legal advice to anyone in most areas of law. You should contact your nearest Legal Aid office and make an appointment to see a lawyer or, if you are not sure which is your nearest Legal Aid office, call LawAccess NSW to find out.

Community Legal Centres. Most community legal centres can provide free legal advice. Occasionally they may also be able to represent you. However they have limited resources and can only act in a limited number of matters. A community legal centre may also give you referrals to other organisations. You can call LawAccess NSW to find the centre closest to you.

The NSW Law Society’s Pro Bono Scheme coordinates referrals of clients to law firms willing to provide legal assistance without charge or for a reduced fee. The scheme has a criterion by which it determines the matters it refers to law firms. In order to qualify you must have been refused legal aid for the relevant proceedings; a means and merit test will be applied; and the matter must fall within the Law Society Scheme’s guidelines. You can contact the scheme on 02 9926 0364 or email probonoscheme@lawsocnsw.asn.au.

Private Law Firm Pro Bono Schemes. Some law firms have pro bono schemes and may be able to act for you without charge. Some large law firms which have pro bono schemes include Allens Arthur Robinson, Blake Dawson, Clayton Utz, DLA Phillips Fox, Freehills, Gilbert + Tobin, and Mallesons Stephen Jaques. Usually the firms can only assist you if you have been refused Legal Aid and cannot get assistance through a community legal centre. Different law firms have different criteria by which they assess whether they will take on a pro bono client. A law firm will not be able to take your matter on if it has a conflict of interest or if your case is in an area outside their expertise. The best way to be referred to a law firm pro bono scheme is through Legal Aid NSW, a community legal centre, or the NSW Law Society’s Pro Bono Scheme.

There are four things you need to be insured for:

• Third party personal injury
• Public liability
• Damage and loss
• Travel

Third party personal injury

In NSW most wheelchairs and scooters are automatically covered for third party personal injury they cause on a “road or road related area” if the user is at fault. In the Motor Accidents Act 1988 and the Road Transport (Vehicle Registration) Act 1997, road or road related area includes:

1. an area that divides a road;
2. a footpath or nature strip adjacent to a road;
3. an area that is open to the public and is designed for use by cyclists or animals; and
4. an area that is not a road and that is open to or used by the public for driving, riding or parking motor vehicles.

The protection is under the Nominal Defendant Scheme which is administered by Motor Accident Authority (MAA). The Nominal Defendant would pay compensation to the injured person and would not seek to recover that payment from the at fault driver of the chair if it was exempt from registration. That is if the wheelchair cannot travel at more than 10 km/h. Previously it was also limited to chairs that weigh less than 110 kg.

Similar schemes operate in other states.

Home Contents Insurance

Public liability, damage and loss

You also need to think about liability cover for injury and property damage. That is generally part of a home contents insurance policy. However not all insurers offer this extended cover.

Ask your insurer the following questions. If you don't like what you hear, shop around.

• Will the policy provide cover for damage my chair may cause others, including personal and property damage?
• Does the cover extend outside my home?
• What is the value of this cover? (Typically it should be $10 million).
• Am I covered on public roads as well as private property?
• Are there any exemptions?

That type of cover is sometimes only available if you insure your chair as an item taken outside your home, in the same way you might insure jewellery or a camera.

The home contents insurance also covers the value of the chair if it is lost, damaged or stolen.

Travel

When you travel any damage that happens to the chair in transit while your chair is 'luggage' will be the responsibility of the airline. However you should add it to the list of specified items as like you do for other possessions over a certain value as required by the travel insurance company.

No home contents insurance?

One company we have found is Protecsure (1300 268 374). Protecsure is the only company in Australia with a sole focus on insuring mobile equipment. They will cover the chair as a single item. However the cover does not include public liability.

The cost depends on the value of your chair.

For a $5,000 chair, it is $247. For a $15,000 chair, it is  $742. There is a $250 excess per claim. (Prices as at 1 July 2009)