Once a solicitor takes on a car accident claim, the file follows a fairly set path under NSW law. Statutory benefits come first. Medical evidence builds as your injuries settle. A damages claim generally can't be lodged before 20 months unless your impairment is more than 10%, and must generally be made within 3 years. For people in Lidcombe, we explain each stage and connect you with an independent solicitor when your claim needs one.
Parramatta & Cumberland · How a car accident solicitor runs a claim
Car accident solicitor Lidcombe: the file, start to finish
A damages file generally takes years, not weeks. Here's why, and what happens at each stage.
Postcode: 2141
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Lidcombe: records, hospitals and the file
Westmead Hospital, The Children's Hospital at Westmead and Auburn Hospital may hold the first records after a crash here. A solicitor collects them early and keeps them in order for the damages claim. If your crash happened on a local road in the Cumberland City Council area, the police event number and any nearby camera footage may become part of the file. A solicitor usually checks early whether those records exist and are being kept. If the crash happened on Parramatta Road, the solicitor will want the exact location, direction of travel and time. Those details appear in the police record and in the account of the accident that goes into the damages claim.
- Region
- Parramatta & Cumberland
- Postcode
- 2141
- Local government area
- Cumberland City Council
- Main roads
- Parramatta Road · Joseph Street
- Nearest public hospital
- Concord Repatriation General Hospital
The first review of your claim
Early on, the solicitor works out which stage your claim is at and what is coming next. If you're still receiving statutory benefits, the focus may be on keeping them in place. If the insurer has made a threshold decision, the focus may be whether to challenge it. If a damages claim is possible, the solicitor starts planning its timing from your accident date.
Negotiation and settlement
Damages claims are most often resolved by negotiation. The insurer and the solicitor exchange evidence and offers, sometimes at a settlement conference with you present or available. You'll hear what each offer means against the evidence, and what going further could risk. You decide whether to accept. If an offer seems low, the solicitor can generally answer it with further evidence rather than a flat refusal.
Read next:CTP settlements
Lodging the damages claim
A damages claim is separate from the statutory benefits claim. It can generally be made only if another driver was at fault, you weren't mostly at fault and your injury is more than a threshold injury. It generally can't be made before 20 months after the accident unless whole person impairment is more than 10%, and must generally be made within 3 years.
Once lodged, the insurer considers the claim and decides whether it accepts liability for damages. It may accept, dispute some parts, or deny liability altogether, for example if it says you were mostly at fault. The solicitor responds to each position with evidence. Your part is mainly to keep up treatment and tell the solicitor about any change in your work or health.
Read next:CTP damages claims
Building the medical side of the file
The medical evidence on a file comes from what your treating doctors record, what independent specialists report, and how your injuries look once they've settled. The insurer may arrange its own examination. Impairment assessment usually waits until recovery has plateaued, because an early assessment can understate a lasting injury. How impairment is assessed is covered elsewhere; here it matters for timing.
If the claim doesn't settle: the PIC
If the insurer and the solicitor can't agree, the damages claim can generally go to claims assessment at the Personal Injury Commission, the independent tribunal that has handled CTP disputes since 1 March 2021. An assessor considers the evidence and submissions from both sides and assesses the damages. The solicitor prepares the application and the material the assessor will rely on.
Read next:The Personal Injury Commission
The statutory benefits stage
For the first part of a CTP file, the claim is about statutory benefits: weekly payments if you can't work, and treatment and care that is reasonable and necessary. Much of this runs directly between you and your case manager. The solicitor's role is to watch the insurer's decisions and step in where one affects your entitlements or your later damages claim.
Already lodged your claim? How a solicitor steps in
Many people lodge a CTP claim themselves and only look for a solicitor later, often after a decision goes against them or when a damages claim comes into view. That's common and generally not a problem. The solicitor notifies the insurer, obtains your claim file and reviews what has happened so far. The time limits keep running throughout, so earlier is better than later.
Read next:Free claim check
Six stages of a solicitor-run CTP claim
A solicitor running a NSW CTP file works to a timetable set largely by law. These six stages show what generally happens, and roughly when. Your own file may skip a stage or linger in one.
At the start
File review and costs disclosure
First comes a review: what happened, which insurer has the claim, what it has decided and which dates matter. You should also be given written information about costs before significant work starts, and you can ask questions about it.
The first months
The statutory benefits stage
Statutory benefits run from early in the claim. For threshold injuries they generally end at 52 weeks, for accidents from 1 April 2023; otherwise weekly payments can generally continue for up to 104 weeks. The solicitor tracks these limits and the decisions that affect them.
As injuries settle
Medical evidence and impairment
The medical evidence builds over time: treating records, specialist opinions and, where needed, medico-legal reports. Impairment is usually assessed only when your condition has settled, so this stage can't be rushed.
From 20 months
The damages claim is lodged
Timing here is set by law. The earliest point is generally 20 months after the accident, or sooner with impairment above 10%. The latest is generally 3 years. Lodging within 2 years keeps weekly payments available past the 2-year mark while the claim is pending.
After lodgement
Negotiation with the insurer
The insurer considers the damages claim and may accept or dispute parts of it. The solicitor exchanges evidence and offers with the insurer, and may take part in a settlement conference. You decide whether to accept any offer.
Resolution
Settlement, or assessment at the PIC
A damages claim generally can't settle within 2 years of the accident unless impairment is more than 10%. If negotiation doesn't produce an agreement, the Personal Injury Commission can assess the claim, and some claims go to court instead.
General information, not legal advice. Every file is different, and the timing rules depend on your accident date. Time limits apply.
Handing your file to a car accident solicitor: when it helps
Whether a solicitor should run your file depends on which stage it's at. Early on, you may not need one. Later, when timing rules and evidence start to shape the result, many people with a damages claim find one helpful.
Often worth talking to a lawyer
- A threshold decision could close off the damages stage
- An offer has arrived and you don't know how to weigh it
- The insurer wants you to sign a release or deed
- Your earnings are irregular and proving lost income will take work
You may not need one
- You accept that you were mostly at fault and your benefits are flowing
- Your injury has been accepted as a threshold injury and you agree with it
- What you need most right now is medical care, not a file review
Consistent treatment makes for a clearer file. Ask us about doctors and allied health, such as GPs, physiotherapists and psychologists, who understand CTP claims and complete the Certificate of Fitness.
Not quite your situation?
- If fault is still being argued, the car accident lawyer page explains how it's decided and why it matters to your claim. Car accident lawyer in Lidcombe
- If you're still deciding whether a lawyer is worth it for your CTP claim, start with the CTP lawyer page. CTP lawyer in Lidcombe
- If you want to understand how impairment is assessed and what a serious injury means for your claim, see the injury compensation lawyer page. Injury compensation lawyer in Lidcombe
Free claim check
Free check on where your file is up to
Let us know what stage your claim has reached. We'll explain the next one and connect you with an independent solicitor if your file needs one.
Frequently asked questions
Generally, the insurer and your solicitor meet, in person or online, to try to agree on a settlement figure. You'll usually be asked to attend or be available by phone, because any offer needs your instructions. Beforehand, the solicitor will prepare you by going through the evidence and the likely arguments. Offers may go back and forth during the conference. Nothing is settled unless you agree to it.
The file shifts to proving the points the insurer disputes. That may be who caused the crash, whether you were mostly at fault, or whether your injury is more than a threshold injury. The solicitor gathers evidence on each point and responds to the insurer. If the dispute can't be resolved by negotiation, it may go to the Personal Injury Commission. Statutory benefits you're already receiving are a separate question and may continue meanwhile.
In order: reviews the dates, decisions and deadlines already on your claim; watches the statutory benefits stage and challenges decisions that seem wrong; builds the medical evidence as your injuries settle; times and lodges the damages claim; negotiates with the insurer; and resolves the claim by settlement or claims assessment. Throughout, the solicitor tracks the time limits and explains each decision, while you keep up treatment and give instructions.
Usually a release or deed of settlement. In exchange for the agreed amount, it generally ends your damages claim and stops you bringing it again. It may also deal with other matters, such as what happens to any statutory benefits still being paid. Read it carefully and ask your solicitor to explain each part before you sign, because a signed settlement is very hard to undo.
You may. A medico-legal report is written by an independent doctor for the claim itself, not for treatment. Your solicitor may arrange one or more, often once your injuries have stabilised, to give an opinion on your injuries, their cause and your capacity to work. They're different from your treating doctors' records, which remain important. Ask your solicitor who is being asked for a report and why.
It depends on your injuries and the timing rules. As a general rule, not before 20 months after the accident unless whole person impairment is assessed as more than 10%, and generally no later than 3 years after it. Many solicitors aim to lodge within 2 years, because that keeps weekly payments available beyond the 2-year point while the claim is pending. The right moment balances those limits against how settled your injuries are.
Car accident solicitor: suburbs near Lidcombe
Related reading
- CTP lump sum and damages claims
- CTP settlement: what to expect
- CTP claim timeline in NSW
- CTP claim time limits
- Whole person impairment
- Neck Injury
- Lower Back Pain After a Car Accident
- Headaches After a Car Accident
- Pre-Existing Condition Aggravation
- CTP claims for drivers
- Parramatta & Cumberland: area guide
- Car Accident Lawyer Help in Sydney
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CTP Lawyer is not a law firm. This page is general information, not legal advice; the independent lawyer you speak with can advise on your own situation.