384Compensation payable to surviving spouses or de facto partners under 1972 and 1982 Acts

1. Section 446 of the Accident Insurance Act 1998 continues to apply in respect of the spouse or de facto partner of a deceased person who was entitled to receive, immediately before 1 April 2002, compensation under that section.

2. However, despite subsection (1), the spouse or de facto partner may choose to convert the entitlement to compensation under section 446 of the Accident Insurance Act 1998 to 1 or more aggregated payments and, in those circumstances, clause 67 of Schedule 1 applies as if the entitlement to compensation were an entitlement to weekly compensation under clause 66 of Schedule 1.

3. For the purposes of subsection (1), section 446 continues to apply as if subsection (3) of that section provided as follows:

   The compensation ceases on the earlier of the following dates:

   the date on which the youngest child of the claimant of whom the surviving spouse had care turns 18 years:

   the date on which the surviving spouse ceases to have the care of all children of the claimant who were in the surviving spouse's care.

4. For the purposes of subsection (1), section 446 continues to apply as if subsection (4) of that section provided as follows:

   The compensation does not cease if, when compensation would otherwise cease under subsection (3), the spouse—

   is 45 years or older; or

   would have been entitled to continue to receive compensation under section 123 of the Accident Compensation Act 1972 or section 65 of the Accident Compensation Act 1982.

5. For the purposes of subsection (1), section 446 continues to apply as if, after subsection (5), the following subsection were inserted:

   However, a surviving spouse who enters into a relationship in the nature of marriage before 1 July 1999 is to be treated as if he or she had entered into the relationship on 1 July 1999.