Facts
E., born in 1941, registered with the Unemployment Insurance, worked as a roofer for G. in secondary employment from mid-March 2004 onwards, who in addition to his agricultural business also operated a roofing and plumbing company. On September 3, 2004, E. fell during roofing work and sustained fatal injuries. The company reported the incident to Allianz Suisse Versicherungs-Gesellschaft (Allianz) on September 9, 2004. Allianz forwarded the accident report to the Swiss National Accident Insurance Fund (SUVA), as the roofing company had not been affiliated with it for the implementation of the mandatory accident insurance, but fell within the scope of SUVA.
Considerations
The Federal Supreme Court states that according to Art. 78a AOIA, the Federal Office of Public Health (FOPH) must issue a decision in disputes between insurers regarding the jurisdiction for benefits under the Accident Insurance Act (AOIA). In the present case, the FOPH initially did not enter into the request of SUVA, as it was of the opinion that there was no AOIA insurance relationship between the company G. and Allianz for the roofing business unit. The Federal Administrative Court overturned this non-entry decision and referred the matter back to the FOPH to decide on the merits of SUVA's request.
The Federal Supreme Court confirms that the FOPH is obliged to decide in a procedure under Art. 78a AOIA which insurer is responsible for the benefits under the AOIA. It cannot dismiss the matter with a non-entry decision if there is a negative conflict of competence between the insurers.
Regarding the jurisdiction of Allianz, the Federal Supreme Court states that there was no insurance relationship…