Passenger Injured in a Car Accident: Your CTP Rights in NSW
Of everyone who can be hurt in a car accident, passengers are often in the strongest position to claim, and yet they are among the least likely to do so. The reason is usually not the law. It is that the person driving was a friend, a partner, a parent or a workmate, and the thought of making a claim connected to them feels like a betrayal. So people stay quiet, go without the income support and treatment they need, and quietly carry the cost of an injury that was never their fault.
If that is you, there is something important you should know. Making a claim as an injured passenger does not mean turning on the person who was driving. The compulsory third party, or CTP, scheme exists for exactly this situation, and the claim is made against an insurer, not against your friend or family member personally.
This guide explains your rights as an injured passenger, how claiming works when someone you know was driving, what you can claim, which insurer is involved, and how a claim can be affected if you were partly at fault. Please treat it as general information rather than advice about your own claim, and you should seek legal advice about your particular situation before making decisions about it.
Are passengers covered when injured in a car accident?
Yes, and clearly so. The CTP scheme, set up by the Motor Accident Injuries Act 2017 (NSW) and regulated by the State Insurance Regulatory Authority, known as SIRA, covers people injured in a motor accident, and passengers are squarely within it.
In fact, passengers are usually among the best placed to claim, for a simple reason. You were not driving, so you are rarely at fault for the accident. That matters, because the injured people with the fullest entitlements under the scheme are those who were not wholly or mostly at fault, and a passenger almost always falls into that group. You can generally access early benefits regardless of who caused the crash, and where your injuries are serious enough, the door to a common law damages claim is usually open to you.
It also does not matter which vehicle was at fault. Whether the accident was caused by the driver of the car you were in, or by another vehicle, you can claim as an injured passenger.
Claiming when a friend or family member was driving
This is the part that stops so many people, so it is worth being very clear about how it works.
When you make a CTP claim, you are claiming against a compulsory insurance policy, the green slip that every registered vehicle must have. That insurance exists precisely so that people injured in accidents can be compensated without having to chase the driver personally. Your claim is handled and paid by the insurer, not out of your friend or family member’s own pocket.
The driver does not personally pay your compensation. They do not have to defend themselves against you. In most cases, being the driver whose vehicle was involved does not cost them anything out of pocket, because that is exactly the risk their green slip is there to cover. In practical terms, claiming is not something done to them, it is something the insurance system is designed to absorb.
Understood that way, the decision looks very different. Declining to claim does not protect your friend, who is covered either way. It only deprives you of the support you are entitled to while you recover.
Consider a brief example. Someone is seriously injured while riding as a passenger in a car driven by a close friend who misjudged a turn. She does not want to cause her friend trouble, so she hesitates to claim. Once she understands that her claim is against the vehicle’s CTP insurer, and that her friend will not be personally out of pocket, she is able to access the income support and treatment she needs. This example is illustrative only and every claim depends on its own facts.
What you can claim as an injured passenger
An injured passenger can access the same two types of entitlement as any other injured road user.
Statutory benefits are the early, practical support. They provide weekly payments to replace lost income if you cannot work, and cover reasonable and necessary treatment and care related to your injury, such as hospital, surgery, physiotherapy and rehabilitation. These are available regardless of fault for an initial period.
Common law damages are a separate lump sum for the longer term cost of a more serious injury. They depend on a driver having been at fault, which for a passenger is often straightforward, and on your injuries being more than threshold injuries. They compensate your past and future loss of earnings, with an additional amount for pain and suffering if your permanent impairment is greater than 10 per cent.
Because a passenger is rarely at fault, both tracks are frequently available where the injuries justify them.
Which insurer do you claim against?
Passengers sometimes worry about getting this wrong, but it is usually straightforward, and it can be sorted out even when the position is unclear. The table below sets out the common situations.
| Your situation | Who you generally claim against |
|---|---|
| The driver of your car caused the accident | The CTP insurer of the car you were in |
| Another vehicle caused the accident | The CTP insurer of that other vehicle |
| Both drivers shared the blame | Either insurer, with the scheme apportioning responsibility |
| The vehicle at fault was unidentified or uninsured | The Nominal Defendant |
| You were in a taxi, rideshare or bus | The CTP insurer of the vehicle at fault |
If you are not sure which insurer to lodge with, you do not need to work it out on your own. CTP Assist or a lawyer can help identify the right insurer, and lodging with the insurer of the vehicle you were in is often a sensible starting point.
Passengers in taxis, rideshares and buses
You are covered as a passenger whether you were in a private car, a taxi, a rideshare vehicle or a bus. If you are injured in one of these, your claim proceeds against the CTP insurer of whichever vehicle was at fault, in the same way as any other passenger claim. Commercial passenger transport does not change your rights, so do not let uncertainty about who was responsible stop you from getting advice.
Can a passenger’s claim be reduced?
Although passengers are rarely at fault for an accident, there are a couple of situations where a passenger’s own conduct can reduce a damages claim through what is called contributory negligence.
The most common is not wearing a seatbelt. Where the failure to wear an available seatbelt contributed to your injuries, your damages may be reduced to reflect that. Another situation is knowingly travelling with a driver who was affected by alcohol or drugs, where the law may treat you as having accepted some of the risk.
It is important to keep this in perspective. Contributory negligence reduces a claim by a percentage, it does not usually remove it, and being wholly or mostly at fault is very rare for a passenger. If either of these situations applies to you, it is worth advice rather than assuming you have no claim.
What to do after the accident
The steps below protect both your health and your claim.
- Get medical attention promptly, and make sure all of your injuries are recorded, including any that emerge in the days afterwards.
- Report the accident to police within 28 days and obtain an event number.
- Note the details of the vehicles, the drivers and any witnesses, and keep anything that helps establish what happened.
- Lodge your CTP claim within 28 days to have income support backdated to the accident, and within three months at the latest.
- Keep records of your treatment, your expenses and how the injury is affecting you.
- Get legal advice early, particularly if your injuries are serious or you are unsure how a claim will affect the driver.
How Stephen Young Lawyers can help
The biggest barrier for injured passengers is usually not the strength of the claim but the worry about what it means for someone they care about. An experienced personal injury lawyer can explain, in plain terms, how the claim actually works, so you can make a decision based on the facts rather than on a misunderstanding of who pays.
Beyond that, we make sure your claim is lodged correctly and on time, identify the right insurer, ensure your injuries are fully documented, advise on a common law damages claim where your injuries are serious, and resist unfair arguments about contributory negligence.
If you want to understand the process more broadly, we have guides on how to make a CTP claim in NSW, on statutory benefits versus common law damages, and on the rights of a pedestrian hit by a car and a cyclist injured by a vehicle. You can read about your broader options on our motor vehicle accident claims page, and if your injuries have permanently affected your ability to work, a Total and Permanent Disability claim through your superannuation may also be available. 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 review your situation and tell you where you stand.
No lawyer can promise you a particular outcome, and every claim turns on its own facts. What can be said is that claiming as a passenger is not something done to the driver, and that the support available to you is worth understanding before you decide to go without it.
Speak with an experienced motor accident lawyer today
If you have been injured as a passenger in a car accident anywhere in New South Wales, do not let concern for the driver, or the 28 day deadline, stop you from finding out where you stand.
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 your options.
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