Motor Accident New South Wales (NSW)

If you were involved in a motor vehicle accident as a driver who was not at fault, as a passenger or as a pedestrian struck by a vehicle and you sustained an injury you may be entitled to make a claim under the Motor Accident Compensation Act 1999. If you were traveling on your way to or from work you may also have potential Workers Compensation entitlements.

You are unable to make a claim if:
- You were entirely at fault for the accident
- There was no party at fault eg. A single vehicle accident or an animal
- If you were injured by someone who was not in a motor vehicle eg. Cyclists

There is a 3 year limitation period which applies in the pursuit of a motor accidents claim in NSW. As the time limits are quite strict when applied to Motor Vehicle Accident claims, there are a few steps which need to be taken as soon as possible.

For accidents occurring after October 1999, if a CTP claim has been lodged with the insurer, a claim can still be made through CARS even if outside of the 3 year time limit! If the client then disagrees with the assessment made by CARS, it is at this stage that an application for a time extension would need to be made.

How do I lodge a claim?

Firstly, the accident must be reported to the Police within 28 days. Once fault is determined and the police believe that you are not at fault, a claim must be lodged with the CTP insurer within 6 months of the date of the accident. If the CTP insurer is unknown, you need to call the Motor Accidents Authority on 1300 137 600 and quote the registration number of the vehicle at fault and they will advise who the insurer is.

If you have not lodged the CTP claim within 6 months, then we recommend that you do so immediately.

If the driver at fault is unknown (eg. Hit and run) or uninsured, there is a government scheme in place to cover these situations. You must lodge a claim with the Nominal Defendant Scheme. In order to do this, you need to contact the Motor Accidents Authority on 1300 656 919 and have them send out a claim form for the Nominal Defendant Scheme.

If liability is accepted, you may be entitled to compensation.

What if the insurance company denies liability?

If liability is denied by the insurance company or if they only accept partial responsibilty, you will need to immediately apply for an exemption from the Claims and Assessment Resolution Service and take your matter straight to court.

What am I entitled to?

As you may be aware, the NSW Motor Accident Compensation Laws have had an overhaul courtesy of former Premier Bob Carr and his Labor Government. The laws have been changed to favor the Insurance companies and you, the person who was not at fault and who did not ask to be injured have had your entitlements drastically diminished. These laws are not fair, the innocent people of NSW Motor Vehicle accidents are suffering and not being compensated. That is why we at Legal Injury want to make sure you get the full entitlements from what little former Premier Bob Carr and his Government have left you.

If you suffer a loss of earnings as a result of another party's negligence (including the driver of your vehicle if you are a passenger) you are be entitled to claim loss of earnings as a result of the injury sustained. There are certain maximums to such claims on which you should get advice and therefore please contact Legal Injury today.

You may also be entitled to medical expenses which were incurred as a result of the motor vehicle accident. This can also be claimed from the Compulsory Third Party insurer for past and future expenses. Other losses incurred such as traveling expenses, the cost of home assistance, etc may also be able to be claimed.

If a minor is injured in a motor vehicle accident, irrespective of whether the accident was their fault or not they are entitled to compensation, in such circumstances please immediately contact Legal Injury today.

In order to be entitled to any lump sum compensation for 'pain and suffering' in NSW, the injury sustained must be assessed at 10% whole person impairment - this is an extremely high threshold. In order that the Compulsory Third Party insurer offers you exactly what you are entitled to, the staff at Legal Injury are here to field your calls to ensure your rights are not being exploited.

What are the costs?

The bulk of the solicitors' costs are recoverable from the CTP insurer.

If the client reaches the 10% whole person impairment threshold or the value of the claim exceeds $20 000 (that being clear medical treatment expenses and wage loss) then there is a greater availability of solicitors costs.

To receive the maximum damages on your Personal Injury Claim come talk to the professionals at Legal Injury today.