Many motor accident lawyers offer arrangements described as no win, no fee, but the terms aren't standard. Before you sign anything, ask for the costs terms in writing and read them closely. People in Bilgola Plateau can also start with our free, no-obligation claim check, which looks at whether your claim needs a lawyer in the first place. Plenty of CTP claims never do, and then the costs question doesn't arise.
Northern Beaches · No win, no fee explained
Looking for a no win, no fee lawyer in Bilgola Plateau?
Many motor accident lawyers offer costs terms like this. The details differ, so compare them before you sign.
Postcode: 2107
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- By phone & online, no office to visit
- Helping people in Bilgola Plateau & Clareville
The phrase, explained plainly
Many motor accident lawyers offer terms described as no win, no fee. It's a way of structuring fees so that more of the risk of an unsuccessful claim sits with the lawyer. It doesn't mean legal help is free, and it doesn't mean every cost disappears. Think of the phrase as the heading on a set of terms, then read the terms underneath it.
Regulated costs and what they mean for you
In statutory benefits matters, the insurer pays the legal costs the rules allow, and some disputes allow none. For damages claims, the maximum a lawyer can charge is also capped. So in a CTP claim, “no win, no fee” is only part of the costs picture. The rest is set by the Regulation, and a lawyer should be able to explain in writing how both apply to your claim.
Some help is free to use. SIRA funds a CTP Legal Advisory Service for statutory benefits questions on accidents from 1 December 2017, reached through CTP Assist on 1300 656 919. It doesn't cover damages claims, older-scheme claims or matters already at internal review or the Personal Injury Commission. Workers compensation is a separate scheme again: in a workers compensation dispute, legal costs may be funded through the Independent Review Office's ILARS program if a grant is approved, and that program doesn't cover CTP claims.
Read next:What does a CTP lawyer cost?
Costs questions for people in Bilgola Plateau
If Northern Beaches Hospital or Mona Vale Hospital treated you, a claim may later rely on reports about your injuries. Ask how those costs are handled before you sign, not when a bill arrives. Being in the Northern Beaches Council area doesn't change the costs rules for a CTP claim. Maximum legal costs are set statewide by regulation, so a lawyer in another council area works to the same limits as one down the road. Bilgola Plateau is about 12 km north of Dee Why, and comparing costs terms doesn't need a trip there. Written terms can be sent by email, questions answered by phone, and our claim check runs by phone and online.
- Region
- Northern Beaches
- Postcode
- 2107
- Local government area
- Northern Beaches Council
- Distance to Dee Why
- ~12 km
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We don't set any lawyer's fees. We check your claim for free, with no obligation, and point you to the help it actually needs.
Questions to ask before you sign a costs agreement
Costs terms vary between lawyers, so the same label can mean different things. Put these questions to any lawyer before you sign, and compare the answers side by side if you're speaking with more than one.
- Can I have an estimate of total legal costs, in writing?
- If the claim doesn't succeed, what would I have to pay, if anything?
- Will you tell me in writing if that estimate changes?
- Which disbursements, such as medical reports, could I be asked to cover, and when?
- Is there a cooling-off period after I sign?
- How are your professional fees worked out if the claim succeeds?
General information, not legal advice. Costs terms differ between lawyers, and legal costs in CTP claims are regulated. Rely on the written terms you're given.
Before costs: do you need legal help?
The costs question only matters if your claim needs a lawyer, and many claims never do. Here's when legal help is often worth paying for, and when you may manage without it.
Often worth talking to a lawyer
- You're outside a time limit and need a quick legal view
- Your dispute is heading to the Personal Injury Commission
- A damages claim looks possible, so legal costs are likely to be part of the picture
- A settlement offer is waiting for your reply
You may not need one
- You're recovering and expect to be back to normal within months
- SIRA's free CTP Legal Advisory Service covers your statutory benefits question
- One declined treatment request can be sorted out with a report from your doctor
If the gap is treatment rather than legal help, we can put you in touch with doctors and allied health who work with CTP claims. They can also help keep your Certificate of Fitness accurate and current.
Not quite your situation?
- Injured at work rather than on the road? That is usually a workers compensation claim, which runs under different rules from CTP. The free claim check can point you to the right help. Free claim check
- For what happens when you first meet a solicitor, including the costs disclosure and agreement you receive, see the compensation solicitor page for Bilgola Plateau. Compensation solicitor in Bilgola Plateau
- If the bigger question is whether a CTP lawyer is worth it for your claim at all, the CTP lawyer page answers that first. CTP lawyer in Bilgola Plateau
Disbursements and other costs to ask about
The lawyer's professional fees are one thing. Disbursements are another. These are costs paid to others as the claim goes on, such as fees for medical reports or for obtaining records, and they can add up in a claim that needs expert evidence. Ask whether you may be asked to pay them if the claim doesn't succeed, and whether you'd pay as you go or at the end.
- Fees for medical reports
- Charges for obtaining hospital or treatment records
- Interpreter or translation costs, if any
Put the arrangement on paper
Ask the lawyer to confirm in writing how their fees would be calculated if the claim succeeds, and what, if anything, you'd owe if it doesn't. Ask the same about disbursements, and about costs if you end the agreement early. Written answers let you compare lawyers fairly and avoid surprises at the end of the claim.
Keep a copy
Store the written terms with the rest of your claim documents. Checking a later bill against what you signed is much easier when the agreement is to hand.
How to compare costs arrangements fairly
If you're speaking with more than one lawyer, compare their terms on the same points: what's payable if the claim doesn't succeed, how disbursements are treated, how fees on success are worked out, and what the estimate of total costs is. A headline label tells you little. Two arrangements both called no win, no fee can leave you in quite different positions.
Same label, different terms
A label is not a comparison. Put the written terms from each lawyer side by side and check each against the same questions before you decide.
Our claim check is free
Here's the only promise we make about cost: our claim check is free, and there's no obligation. We look at where your claim is up to and tell you what help it needs. Sometimes that's an independent lawyer, and then the costs questions on this page matter. Often it's a doctor, CTP Assist or simply a clear next step, and no costs agreement is needed.
Read next:How our claim check works
Frequently asked questions
In an injury claim, it's shorthand for a costs arrangement in which the lawyer is paid professional fees only if the claim succeeds. The arrangement is often set out in what's called a conditional costs agreement. The details vary between lawyers: how success is defined, how disbursements such as medical reports are handled, and what comes out of any compensation. The written terms are what count, so ask for them and read them before you sign.
Ask about this before you sign, because the answer depends on the agreement and the rules that apply to it. An agreement may include a cooling-off period, and a clear one should explain what happens to costs if you end the arrangement early, including any work already done. If you're unsure, take the agreement away, read it and ask questions first. Signing is easier to delay than to undo.
Ask both for their terms in writing, then compare them on the same points: what you'd owe if you lose, how disbursements are handled, how fees are worked out on success, how success is defined and the estimate of total costs. If one set of terms is vague on any of these, ask for more detail. Take your time; a costs agreement doesn't have to be signed at the first conversation.
That depends on the costs terms, so ask for a written explanation before you sign. Generally, the lawyer's professional fees and any disbursements are paid, and some or all of that may come out of the compensation. In a CTP claim, maximum legal costs are capped by regulation, and in statutory benefits matters the insurer pays the costs the rules allow. Ask for a written breakdown at the end, too.
It depends on the lawyer, so ask before the conversation starts. Some lawyers may not charge for an initial discussion about a motor accident claim, and others may; don't assume either way. Our claim check is different: it's free, with no obligation, and it can tell you whether a lawyer would add anything to your claim before you have that conversation.
No. It generally means the lawyer's own fees aren't charged if the claim doesn't succeed. Other costs may still apply, such as disbursements for medical reports, depending on the terms. If the claim succeeds, fees are generally paid, often from the compensation. Legal costs in a CTP claim are capped by regulation as well. The only free thing we can promise is our own claim check, which comes with no obligation.
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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.