“No win, no fee” describes how some lawyers charge. It isn't a rule of the NSW CTP scheme, and it doesn't mean legal help is free. For people in Kyle Bay weighing up a motor accident claim, the useful questions are what you'd owe if the claim failed, what comes out if it succeeds and whether you need a lawyer at all. Our free claim check can help with the last one.
St George & Bayside · No win, no fee explained
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Postcode: 2221
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Kyle Bay: comparing costs terms from home
If St George Hospital treated you, reports from your treating doctors may be requested during a claim. Whether you pay for them if the claim fails depends on the costs terms, so ask about it early. Council areas such as Georges River Council play no part in what a lawyer can charge on a CTP claim. The limits are set by state regulation and apply across NSW, so compare lawyers on their written terms, not their address. From Kyle Bay, the Sydney CBD is roughly 17 km away. That doesn't limit whose costs terms you can compare. Written terms can be emailed, lawyers can explain them by phone or video, and our claim check is by phone and online.
- Region
- St George & Bayside
- Postcode
- 2221
- Local government area
- Georges River Council
- From the Sydney CBD
- ~17 km
Free claim check
Free, no obligation: start here
Before comparing costs terms, find out whether you need a lawyer. Our free, no-obligation claim check works by phone and online.
What “no win, no fee” generally means
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.
What you might still pay
If a claim doesn't succeed, you may still owe something, depending on the terms. That could include disbursements already paid out, such as medical reports. The agreement should also say what happens to costs if you end it early. None of this is meant to alarm you; it's the reason to read the costs terms closely and ask questions before signing.
- Fees for medical reports
- Filing or application fees, where they apply
- The cost of any expert opinion the lawyer arranges
Before you sign: the costs questions that matter
You don't need to be an expert to read a costs agreement well. You need the right questions. Here are the ones that tend to matter most in a motor accident claim.
- What counts as the claim succeeding under this agreement?
- Will you tell me in writing if that estimate changes?
- 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?
- What happens to costs if I end the agreement before the claim finishes?
- What comes out of my compensation at the end, and in what order?
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.
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.
Comparing costs terms
Line the written terms up side by side. Where one lawyer's terms are specific and another's are vague, ask the second to be specific too. If an answer changes between a phone call and the written terms, go by what's written and ask why. It's reasonable to take a few days to compare before you commit.
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.
How CTP costs rules fit in
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?
Start with a free claim check
Many people search for a no win, no fee lawyer when what they really need is a clear answer about their claim. Our claim check gives you that, free and with no obligation, by phone or online. If your claim does need legal help, you'll go into any costs conversation knowing why, and knowing which questions to ask.
Read next:How our claim check works
Lawyer or not? Settle that first
Before comparing costs terms, check whether you need a lawyer in the first place. These lists cover common situations. Our free claim check can give you an answer for your own facts.
Often worth talking to a lawyer
- Fault is contested, and it decides whether damages are possible
- You're outside a time limit and need a quick legal view
- The insurer has refused your whole claim
- You've been offered costs terms and can't tell what you'd owe if the claim failed
You may not need one
- You're recovering and expect to be back to normal within months
- Your question is general, and CTP Assist can answer it for free
- You only need help with the claim form or finding the right insurer
Sometimes the real gap is medical, not legal. If your Certificate of Fitness or treatment records are thin, we can point you to doctors and allied health experienced with CTP claims, with no costs agreement involved.
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 Kyle Bay. Compensation solicitor in Kyle Bay
- 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 Kyle Bay
Frequently asked questions
You may, depending on the agreement. Some arrangements ask you to cover disbursements, such as medical reports or fees for records, whatever the outcome. Others treat them differently. Ask too what you'd owe if you ended the agreement before the claim finished. Ask the lawyer to set out in writing exactly what you'd owe in an unsuccessful claim, and don't sign until the answer is clear.
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.
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.
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.
No. Many lawyers who handle motor accident claims offer arrangements described as no win, no fee, but not all do, and the terms of those who do are not the same. Some may charge in other ways for some kinds of work. Whatever a lawyer offers, ask for a written costs disclosure and read it before you agree. We don't set any lawyer's fees or terms.
Yes, and it's sensible to. Ask for an estimate in writing, how it was worked out and what could change it, such as the claim running longer than expected or needing more expert reports. Ask how you'll be told if the estimate changes. An estimate isn't a fixed price, but it gives you something to compare between lawyers and to check against as the claim goes on.
No win no fee lawyer: suburbs near Kyle Bay
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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.