Workers’ Comp Claim Denied in Arizona? Your 90 Days to Fight Back

By Joe Styler, Editor, not an attorney · Sources checked October 18, 2026

Short answer: a workers comp claim denied in Arizona is not the end of the road, but the denial becomes final if you do nothing. The insurance carrier’s denial comes on a Notice of Claim Status. To challenge it, you file a written request for a hearing with the Industrial Commission of Arizona (ICA), and under A.R.S. § 23-947 that request must be in the ICA’s possession within 90 days after the notice. A judge then hears the case. Miss the 90 days and the denial is final and binding, with only narrow exceptions, and a denied claim that became final cannot later be reopened.

LEGAL ADVERTISEMENT: This site is an independent referral service operated by Wilder West Assets LLC, not a law firm. We connect injured workers in Flagstaff and Coconino County with independent licensed Arizona attorneys who handle workers’ compensation claims. Nothing on this page is legal advice.

How a claim gets denied in Arizona

Arizona’s workers’ compensation system runs through the Industrial Commission. You report the injury to your employer, a claim is filed with the ICA, and the employer’s insurance carrier (or a self-insured employer) decides whether to accept it. Under A.R.S. § 23-1061(F), the carrier must serve any denial on both the Commission and you. That written denial is the Notice of Claim Status.

The carrier also faces a clock. Under § 23-1061(M), if it does not issue a denial within 21 days after the Commission notifies it of the claim, it must start paying as if the claim were accepted until it does deny, except in cases involving seven days or less of lost time.

Common reasons for a denial

• “Not work-related.” Arizona pays compensation for injuries by accident “arising out of and in the course of employment,” under A.R.S. § 23-1021. Carriers deny when they say the injury happened off the clock, off the job, or from a non-work cause.
• Late reporting. A.R.S. § 23-908(E) requires an employee to report an accident to the employer “forthwith.” An unexcused failure to report can bar compensation, but the Commission can excuse it when the circumstances justify it.
• Late claim filing. A claim must be filed with the ICA within one year after the injury, or after it became manifest, under § 23-1061(A).
• Pre-existing condition. Carriers argue the condition came from somewhere else. Aggravation of a prior condition by work can still matter, and medical evidence decides it.
• Mental injury. Under A.R.S. § 23-1043.01(B), a mental condition is compensable only if unexpected, unusual or extraordinary work stress, or a physical work injury, was a substantial contributing cause.
• Disputed medical opinions. The employer can designate a physician for one examination under § 23-908(F), and that report can be the basis for a denial.

The appeal path, step by step

1. Request a hearing within 90 days. File a written request with the ICA, signed by you or on your behalf, with your address, stating that you want a hearing, under § 23-941(B). It must reach the Commission within 90 days of the Notice of Claim Status.
2. Notice and hearing. All parties get at least 20 days’ notice of the hearing. Hearings are held in the county where you lived when you were hurt, or another place the administrative law judge selects, under § 23-941(D). The judge is not bound by formal rules of evidence, and parties are entitled to subpoenas for witnesses.
3. The award. The administrative law judge must decide within 30 days after the matter is submitted, under § 23-942(A).
4. Request for review. If you disagree, you have 30 days after the award is served to file a request for review, under § 23-942(D). The decision on review is due within 60 days under § 23-943(F).
5. Court of Appeals. Within 30 days after the decision on review, a party can ask the Arizona Court of Appeals to review it by writ of certiorari, under § 23-943(H) and § 23-951. That review is limited to whether the Commission acted within its power and whether the findings support the award.

When a late hearing request can be excused

A.R.S. § 23-947(B) lets the Commission or a court excuse a late filing only in three situations:

• you didn’t request a hearing because you justifiably relied on a representation by the Commission, your employer or the carrier, after reasonably diligent efforts to verify it;
• you were legally incompetent or incapacitated, including being a minor, when the notice was sent; or
• you prove by clear and convincing evidence that you never received the notice.

Even then, the excuse fails if you or your lawyer knew, or should have known, about the notice during the filing period. Treat the 90 days as fixed.

Why a final denial is so costly

Arizona lets an accepted claim be reopened later for a new, additional or previously undiscovered condition, with a physician’s statement, under § 23-1061(H). But the same subsection says a claim cannot be reopened if the original claim was denied and that denial was allowed to become final without an excuse under § 23-947. In plain terms, letting a denial go final can close the door on that injury for good.

What to do this week

• Find the Notice of Claim Status and the date on it. Count 90 days and aim to file well before.
• Request the hearing in writing with the ICA, or have a lawyer do it. Keep proof of when the Commission received it.
• Keep getting medical care and ask your doctors to put work-relatedness in writing where it is true.
• Collect evidence: the date and how you reported the injury, names of supervisors and coworkers who saw it or heard about it, incident reports, and texts or emails.
• Get your claim file. Under § 23-941(H), an interested party or their authorized agent can inspect the Commission’s claim file with written authorization.
• Track mileage to medical care. Travel over 25 miles each way for treatment can be reimbursable under § 23-1062(C), which matters for workers in rural Coconino County.

When someone other than your employer caused the injury

If a third party caused your injury, such as another driver in a crash while you were on the job, you may have a separate claim against that person under A.R.S. § 23-1023. If you don’t file that action within one year, the claim is deemed assigned to the carrier, and the carrier has a lien on the net recovery for benefits paid. Work-related crashes can involve delivery and commercial drivers on I-17 and I-40; see our pages on delivery driver crashes and I-17 truck crashes.

Flagstaff jobs and injuries

Flagstaff’s workforce includes health care, manufacturing, tourism and hospitality, education, construction, and outdoor and seasonal work. Our guide to Flagstaff workplace injuries by industry covers the claims that come up in each, and our Flagstaff workers’ compensation guide covers benefits and filing from the start.

Frequently asked questions

What do I do if my workers comp claim is denied in Arizona?

File a written request for a hearing with the Industrial Commission of Arizona so that it is received within 90 days after the Notice of Claim Status, under A.R.S. 23-947. An administrative law judge then hears the case.

How long do I have to appeal a workers comp denial in Arizona?

The hearing request must be in the Commission’s possession within 90 days after the notice. After a hearing, there are 30 days to request review of the award, and 30 more days after a decision on review to go to the Court of Appeals.

What happens if I miss the 90-day deadline?

The denial becomes final and binding. A late filing can be excused only for justifiable reliance on a representation, legal incapacity or minority, or clear and convincing proof the notice never arrived.

Can I reopen a denied workers comp claim later?

Not if the denial was allowed to become final without an excuse. Arizona allows reopening of accepted claims for new or previously undiscovered conditions, but A.R.S. 23-1061(H) bars reopening a claim whose denial became final.

Where will my hearing be held?

In the county where you lived at the time of the injury, or another place the administrative law judge selects, under A.R.S. 23-941(D). You get at least 20 days’ notice.

Can I still sue if another driver caused my work injury?

Possibly. A.R.S. 23-1023 allows a claim against a third party who caused the injury. If you do not file within one year, the claim is deemed assigned to the carrier, and the carrier has a lien for benefits it paid.

Related guides

• Flagstaff workers’ compensation guide
• Flagstaff workplace injuries by industry
• Flagstaff personal injury overview
• Delivery driver crashes
• Flagstaff motor vehicle accident guide

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