Compensation lawyer Kings Park: start with the right claim

Think of it as two layers. The first, statutory benefits, is open to most injured people whoever caused the crash, and covers things like weekly payments while you can't work and treatment and care that is reasonable and necessary. The second, common law damages, is a lump sum only some people can claim: another driver must have been at fault, you must not have been mostly at fault, and your injury must be more than a threshold injury.

Compensation is not a single cheque. What's available to you depends on the facts: whether someone else caused the crash, whether the insurer accepts that your injury goes beyond the threshold, and how your recovery tracks over time. Those facts can change as the claim goes on, which is why an early answer is a starting point rather than a final word.

Insurer letters and claim forms use words that mean something specific in the NSW scheme. You don't need to learn them all, but knowing a handful makes letters easier to follow and helps you ask better questions. Here are some of the most common, in plain English. Most have their own page on this site if you want the detail.

• Statutory benefits: weekly payments and treatment and care that most injured people can claim regardless of fault
• Damages: a lump sum for losses such as past and future earnings, available only in some claims
• Internal review: asking the insurer to look again at a decision you disagree with
• Certificate of Fitness: the claim form that records your injuries and your capacity for work
• Personal Injury Commission: the independent tribunal that decides many disputes in the scheme

Road injury claims in NSW sit inside a scheme with its own language: statutory benefits, threshold injury, whole person impairment, the Personal Injury Commission. A lawyer who uses those words every day, whatever they call themselves, can tell you quickly where your claim stands. That familiarity counts for more than whichever title appears on their website.

People searching for a compensation lawyer are at very different points. Some were hurt recently and haven't lodged anything. Some have been receiving weekly payments for months. Some have a refusal letter in front of them, and some are weighing an offer. Each of those is a different question with a different answer, so start by placing yourself on the list below.

• Benefits being paid: payment questions usually go to your case manager first
• A decision against you: the claim denied page explains internal review and the Personal Injury Commission
• Someone died in the crash: the car accident compensation page covers what dependants may claim

A compensation lawyer's job is to turn what happened to you into a claim the scheme can pay. In a motor accident claim, that usually means explaining what you're entitled to, gathering the evidence of your injury and your losses, dealing with the insurer, challenging decisions that look wrong and advising you on any offer. Knowing that list helps you judge whether your claim needs any of it right now.

The role has limits worth knowing before you decide. A lawyer works for you, but the insurer still makes decisions under the scheme rules, and independent assessors and the Personal Injury Commission decide disputes. Legal help can make sure your side is put clearly and on time. It can't promise what the insurer or an assessor will conclude.

• Explaining which benefits and damages your facts may support
• Preparing a review or dispute when a decision looks wrong
• Keeping track of the deadlines that apply to you

Some injuries lead to claims outside the motor accident scheme. A fall in a shopping centre or on a public footpath is usually a public liability claim. A total and permanent disability (TPD) claim is usually made through the insurance attached to your super. Medical negligence claims follow their own path. All three are usually outside what we help with. Damage to your car is different again: CTP pays for injuries, not vehicles, as the car accident claim page explains.