Employer Ordered to Pay Dh216,000 after Uninsured Worker Injured in Fall

A Dubai court has ordered an employer to pay more than Dh216,000 in medical expenses after failing to provide mandatory health insurance to an employee who was injured in a fall from height.

 

The Dubai Court of First Instance ruled that both the employer and the employee are jointly liable for the unpaid hospital bill but held the company legally responsible under Dubai’s health insurance law.

 

According to court records, the employee was admitted to a private hospital on March 22 last year after sustaining multiple fractures in a fall from height. The case was classified as an emergency.

 

The hospital provided treatment and required medical examinations until the patient was discharged on April 8, 2025.

 

The total cost of care reached Dh216,096.76, the court heard.

 

Documents submitted to the court showed the employee had signed an undertaking accepting responsibility for payment. However, it later emerged that he was not covered by health insurance in the UAE despite being employed by the first defendant company.

 

Under Dubai Law No. 11 of 2013 on Health Insurance, employers are legally required to provide health insurance for their employees. In emergency situations, employers must bear the cost of treatment if a worker is uninsured.

 

The court found no evidence that the employee had been enrolled in any health insurance scheme.

 

Citing established Court of Cassation principles, the judge said the law is intended to ensure access to healthcare for all residents and that employers cannot avoid liability where they have failed to insure their staff.

 

“The source of the employer’s obligation in emergency cases is the law,” the judgment stated.

 

The court ruled that both the employer and the employee are jointly liable for the outstanding amount of Dh216,096.76.

 

However, because the employer failed to enrol the worker in mandatory health insurance, the company was held responsible alongside the employee for the full amount.

 

The court also awarded 5 per cent annual interest on the sum, calculated from April 8, 2025 — the date of discharge — until full payment is made.

 

The hospital had additionally sought Dh50,000 in compensation for material and moral damages caused by delayed payment.

 

The court rejected the request, ruling that the awarded interest sufficiently compensates for the delay.

 

Both defendants were also ordered to pay court costs and Dh500 in legal fees.

 

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