Being hurt in a car accident is disorienting enough without having to work out how the compensation system runs. If you have been injured on a New South Wales road, whether as a driver, passenger, motorcyclist, cyclist or pedestrian, a CTP claim is usually the path to income support while you cannot work and to cover for your treatment. The good news is that the process is more straightforward than it looks, provided you take the right steps early and do not miss the key deadlines.
This guide walks you through how to make a CTP claim in NSW from the day of the accident onwards. It explains who can claim, the two deadlines that matter most, exactly what to do at each stage, what happens once you lodge, and what you may be entitled to. Please treat it as general information rather than advice about your own claim, because every matter turns on its own facts, injuries and circumstances.
What is a CTP claim, and who can make one?
CTP stands for compulsory third party insurance, the cover attached to every registered vehicle through its green slip. The scheme is set up by the Motor Accident Injuries Act 2017 (NSW) and regulated by the State Insurance Regulatory Authority, known as SIRA. It applies to accidents in NSW on or after 1 December 2017.
The important thing to know is how broad the cover is. Almost anyone injured in a motor accident can make a claim, including drivers, passengers, riders, cyclists and pedestrians. For an initial period, you can claim regardless of who caused the accident, which means even a driver who was at fault can receive early benefits. Your claim provides access to statutory benefits, which are income support if you cannot work and payment for your treatment and care, and, for more serious injuries, it can open the door to a separate common law claim for damages.
Consider a common situation. A passenger is injured when the friend driving the car loses control. She assumes she cannot claim because she was not driving, or because her friend was the one at fault. In fact, as an injured passenger she can make a CTP claim regardless of who was responsible, and her early benefits are not affected by the fact that her friend caused the crash. This example is illustrative only, and every claim depends on its own circumstances.
The two deadlines that matter most
Before the steps, it helps to fix two dates in your mind, because missing them can cost you money.
Lodge your claim within 28 days of the accident to have your weekly income payments backdated to the day after the accident. If you lodge after 28 days, your income support will generally only start from the date you lodge, unless you can give a satisfactory explanation for the delay.
Lodge within three months of the accident at the latest. For accidents on or after 1 April 2023, if you lodge within three months and provide a full and satisfactory explanation for any delay, you may still access income support from the date of the accident. Leaving it longer than three months puts your claim at real risk.
There is also a step that sits alongside these. You need to report the accident to police within 28 days and obtain a police event number, which the insurer will ask for. The sooner you do all of this, the smoother the claim.
How to make a CTP claim in NSW, step by step
Here is the process from start to finish. Working through these steps in order is the simplest way to protect your entitlements.
- See a doctor as soon as possible. Even if you feel alright, get checked, because injuries such as whiplash, concussion and soft tissue injuries can take a day or two to show themselves. Ask your GP to record every symptom, and request a Certificate of Fitness, preferably the SIRA form, since you will need it to lodge and to support your income payments.
- Report the accident to police and get an event number. Call the Police Assistance Line on 131 444, or attend a station, within 28 days. You will be given an event number, usually beginning with the letter E, which the insurer uses to verify the accident.
- Gather the details while they are fresh. Record the names, contact details, licence and registration of any drivers involved, the make and model of the vehicles, and the contact details of any witnesses. Photograph the scene if you can, and start keeping every receipt connected to your injury, including medical, travel and any paid help at home.
- Identify the correct CTP insurer. This is the green slip insurer of the vehicle most at fault. If you were at fault, or you cannot identify the other vehicle’s insurer, you generally lodge with your own vehicle’s CTP insurer. If you are unsure, SIRA’s CTP Connect tool or CTP Assist on 1300 656 919 can tell you which insurer to use.
- Complete and lodge the Application for Personal Injury Benefits. This is the SIRA claim form, sometimes called the personal injury benefits form. You can lodge it through Service NSW using a MyServiceNSW account, or by email or post directly to the insurer. Attach your Certificate of Fitness, your police event number, medical receipts and, if you are claiming lost income, proof of your earnings such as payslips. Fill it out carefully and completely, because gaps and inconsistencies can slow things down or be used to question your claim later.
- Wait for the insurer’s decision and keep your evidence current. Once you lodge, the insurer takes over the assessment, but your job is not finished. Keep your Certificate of Fitness up to date, follow your recovery plan, and tell the insurer about any change in your circumstances.
If any of this feels overwhelming while you are trying to recover, that is exactly the point at which speaking to a lawyer or to CTP Assist can take the pressure off.
What happens after you lodge your claim
Once your claim is in, the scheme sets timeframes the insurer must meet, which is helpful to know so you can tell whether things are on track.
The insurer should acknowledge your claim quickly, usually within a few days, and give you a claim number and a contact person. Within about four weeks of lodging, the insurer must make a liability decision about your entitlement to treatment and care and to income support. If your claim is accepted and you are entitled to weekly payments, those payments generally begin within 10 working days of the decision. If the insurer declines all or part of your claim, it must give you reasons in writing and tell you how to seek a review.
Some decisions come later. The insurer generally has up to three months to decide the question of fault, and up to around nine months to determine whether your injuries are classified as threshold injuries. These later decisions matter a great deal, because they affect how long your benefits continue and whether you can pursue a damages claim.
What you can claim: statutory benefits and common law damages
A CTP claim can involve two different types of entitlement, and it helps to understand how they differ. Statutory benefits are the income support and treatment cover available to most injured people from early in the claim. A common law claim for damages is a separate, usually later, claim for the fuller financial cost of a more serious injury, and it depends on another party having been at fault. The table below sets out the main differences.
| Feature | Statutory benefits | Common law damages |
|---|---|---|
| What it covers | Weekly income support and treatment and care expenses | Past and future loss of earnings, and pain and suffering where the impairment threshold is met |
| Do you need to prove fault? | No, available regardless of fault for an initial period | Yes, another party must have been at fault |
| Who can generally access it | Most injured people, including at fault drivers for the first period | People not mostly at fault whose injuries are more than threshold injuries |
| When | From soon after the accident | Usually later, once your injuries have stabilised |
| Key time limit | Lodge within 28 days for backdated income support, and within three months to claim | Court proceedings generally within three years of the accident |
Because a damages claim addresses the long term cost of a serious injury, it is worth getting advice before settling anything. Early offers from an insurer are often made before the full extent of an injury is known, and once a damages claim is resolved it is generally final.
Special situations: at fault, hit and run and uninsured drivers
Two situations cause the most confusion, so they are worth spelling out.
If you were wholly or mostly at fault, you can still claim, and you can still receive statutory benefits for an initial period after the accident. Beyond that period, being wholly or mostly at fault will generally bring your benefits to an end, and it will prevent a damages claim, but it does not stop you claiming the early support you are entitled to.
If the vehicle that injured you cannot be identified, for example in a hit and run, or if it was uninsured, you are not left without options. You can make a claim against what is called the Nominal Defendant, which steps in where there is no insurer to claim against. The same deadlines apply, so it remains important to report the accident and lodge within 28 days where you can.
If you disagree with the insurer’s decision
Insurers do not always get it right, and you have clear rights if you disagree with a decision, whether it is about your income payments, how your injuries have been classified, or fault.
Your first step is usually to request an internal review by the insurer, in writing, within 28 days of the decision. A different person inside the insurer, who was not involved in the original decision, reconsiders it in light of any new information you provide. If you are not satisfied with the internal review, you can take the dispute to the Personal Injury Commission, the independent tribunal that resolves motor accident disputes in NSW. For many CTP disputes, legal costs are regulated and paid by the insurer, which means you can often be represented at little or no cost to you. SIRA’s CTP Assist service can also help point you in the right direction.
How Stephen Young Lawyers can help
You can lodge a CTP claim yourself, and many people do. But the scheme has strict deadlines and turning points that can quietly shape your entitlements, and the insurer is assessing your claim with its own interests in mind. Having an experienced personal injury lawyer means someone is making sure your claim is lodged correctly and on time, that your injuries are fully and accurately documented, and that decisions about your benefits, your injury classification and your fault are challenged where they should be. Where your injuries are serious, we can also advise on whether a common law damages claim is open to you and how to protect its value.
Motor accident injuries also frequently overlap with other entitlements. If your accident happened while you were working or travelling for work, you may also have a workers compensation claim running alongside your motor vehicle accident claim. If your injuries have permanently affected your ability to work, you may also have a Total and Permanent Disability claim through your superannuation. As an Accredited Specialist personal injury firm based in Sydney CBD, with a multilingual team and a No Win No Fee approach for eligible matters, we can guide you through the process and make sure nothing important is missed.
The most valuable thing you can do after a motor accident is get the claim started properly and early, so you can focus on your recovery rather than the paperwork.
Speak with an experienced motor accident lawyer today
If you have been injured in a motor accident anywhere in New South Wales, do not let the 28 day deadline pass before you act, and do not accept an insurer’s decision as final without understanding your rights.
Contact Stephen Young Lawyers today for a free, no obligation consultation. Call us or get in touch through our website to speak with an experienced personal injury lawyer about your accident and the options available to you.