Motor Vehicle Accident Compensation Claims

If you are unable to identify the registration number of the vehicle which caused the accident or if the vehicle was not registered, you can claim against the Nominal Defendant.

You still need to make an Application for Personal Injury Benefit through the SORA website.

You must have tried everything possible to find out the registration number of the vehicle, including speaking the police, talking to witnesses, or by putting an advertisement in the newspaper or flyers in local letterboxes. You must do what you can to find out if anyone can identify and provide you with the registration number of the vehicle.

If you have been unable to identify the vehicle which caused the accident, then you can lodge a claim form with the Nominal Defendant.

To make a claim, you must complete an Application for Personal Injury Benefits through the SIRA Website HERE.

You will need the registration number of the vehicle you consider most at fault.

If you don’t know the registration number (license plate), you might be able to get it from the police. Look at your police report, or contact the Police Assistance Line on 131 444.

You need to take all reasonable steps to find the registration number, but if you can’t, you can still make a claim. Call CTP Assist on 1300 656 919 for assistance.

If you believe you were at fault, you can still make a claim. You will provide the registration number of the vehicle you were driving.

Yes, the new Motor Accident Legislation for injuries received on or after 1 December 2017 now provides very strict time limits in which to make a claim.

These include the following: –

The motor vehicle accident must be reported to the police within 28 days of the accident.

• An Application for Personal Injury Benefits should be completed within 28 days of the accident but can be completed up to three months after the accident.

• If the insurer makes a decision that affects your ongoing entitlements to statutory benefits, this decision must be internally reviewed within 28 days.

• If you disagree with the insurer’s internal review, you can apply for a Merit Review to SIRA, which must be done within 28 days of receiving the internal review.

• A claim to determine the level of whole person impairment (WPI) should be made within two years from the date of the motor vehicle accident. If your WPI has not been assessed or is less than 10%, then weekly benefits cease two years after the motor vehicle accident.

• A claim for common law damages should be made within two years from the date of the motor vehicle accident. This will allow you to continue to receive weekly payments for up to three years (if your whole person impairment is 10% or less) or for up to a maximum of 5 years (if your whole person impairment is 11% or more).

• A claim to determine your common law damages must be made in DRS within three years from the date of the motor vehicle accident.

These time limits are very strict with limited rights of appeal. The time limits must be strictly complied with otherwise, there may be difficulty making a claim at a later time.

The Lifetime Care & Support Authority of NSW is responsible for administering the Lifetime Care & Support Scheme (“the Scheme”)

The scheme provides lifelong treatment, rehabilitation, and care for people who had sustained catastrophic injuries, including spinal cord injury, moderate to severe brain injury, multiple amputations, serious burns or blindness as a result of a motor vehicle accident.

The Lifetime Care & Support Scheme is also responsible for payment of all medical and care needs for all injured people in car accidents after 1 December 2017 where an insurer has accepted that;

1. The injured person was not wholly or mostly at fault and;
2. The injured person does not have a minor injury and
3. Its five years after the motor vehicle accident

The Lifetime Care & Support Scheme takes over from the insurer after 5 years and is responsible for payment of all ongoing medical and care needs.

Yes.

If you believe the accident was not your fault and you have more than a minor injury, you should always get a lawyer to represent you for a claim under the Motor Accident Injuries Act.

If you deal directly with the insurer yourself, you are likely to get significantly less compensation than if you appoint a lawyer to represent you.

The statistics are telling; in 2010 the average settlement amount for persons injured in a car accident who were not legally represented was about $11,000 in the same period the average settlement amount of those who were legally represented was about $90,000 on average.

If you appoint a lawyer, between 50-70% of the legal costs are also payable by the CTP Insurer.

It makes clear financial sense always to appoint a lawyer to represent you as the insurer pays most of the legal costs, and you will receive a much more significant amount of compensation if you appoint a lawyer.

You should also only use a lawyer who is a Specialist in Personal Injury law as accredited by the Law Society of NSW.

Most lawyers will act on your behalf based on a No Win No Fee Costs Agreement, also called a Conditional Costs agreement.

This means that the lawyer will only be paid legal costs if you are successful in obtaining compensation. If you are not successful, the lawyer will not charge you any legal fees. They may still charge disbursements for the cost of medical reports.

If you are successful in your claim, then part of the legal costs are payable by the CTP insurer in accordance with the Motor Accidents Injuries Regulation NSW 2017.

The CTP insurer pays legal costs based on how far the claim progresses and how much compensation is agreed or awarded to you. This amount is usually 50 -70% of the total legal cost’s payable by you to your lawyer.

Your lawyer is not allowed by the Legal Profession Act to charge an amount or percentage based on what you receive in compensation; this is called Contingency fees and is banned in NSW.

The legal costs and disbursements are payable to your lawyer at the conclusion of your claim.

The amount of legal costs and disbursements payable will be determined by the Conditional Costs Agreement you have signed with your lawyer and is payable from the compensation you receive. You should always make sure you clearly understand how your lawyer will charge legal costs before you sign the agreement.