Personal Injury Lawyer Help in NSW

Personal injury law covers a lot of ground, and in NSW the rules depend on how you were hurt. Injuries from a motor vehicle accident, whether you were driving, a passenger, riding, cycling or walking, are generally claimed through the CTP scheme. That's the kind of claim CTP Lawyer helps with.

If you were hurt at work instead, that's usually a workers compensation claim, which is a different scheme. Tell us what happened and we can point you to the right help.

What counts as a personal injury

For a claim, a personal injury is harm to you rather than to your property. It can be physical, such as a neck or back injury, a fracture, a head injury or nerve damage, or psychological, such as anxiety or depression that follows the crash. Many people have both. CTP covers personal injury only, not damage to your car.

The scheme sorts injuries into two broad groups. A threshold injury (previously called a minor injury) is generally a soft tissue injury and/or a threshold psychological injury. Nerve damage, and a full or partial tear of a tendon, ligament, meniscus or cartilage, generally fall outside it. The difference decides how long benefits last and whether damages may be open. For accidents on or after 1 April 2023, statutory benefits for a threshold injury last up to 52 weeks after the accident, so an accurate diagnosis matters.

Evidence worth keeping from the start

Your treating doctors create the medical record. These are the records only you can keep, and they're hard to rebuild months later:

• A short symptom diary: pain, sleep, and what you couldn't do that day. A few lines a week is enough.
• Photos of visible injuries, taken over time rather than only on the first day.
• Receipts for treatment, medication, aids and travel to treatment.
• Records of time off work, reduced hours or changed duties, and any pay you lost.
• A note of everyday tasks you now need help with, and who helps.
• A list of every doctor and therapist you see, with dates.
• Copies of every Certificate of Fitness, and of every form or letter you send to or get from the insurer.

When an injury changes over time

Injuries after a crash don't always follow a straight line. Some symptoms appear days later, some settle and then flare, and some turn out to be more serious than the first diagnosis suggested. Tell your doctor about every change, and make sure the crash is recorded as the cause from the first visit.

Changes matter to a claim because the insurer relies on what is written down. If your doctor orders a scan or refers you on, keep the reports and ask for the change to be noted. If a decision about your injury is later disputed, that record is what the review looks at.

Choosing a personal injury lawyer

If your claim does need a lawyer, experience with this kind of claim matters more than size or advertising. Be wary of anyone who names a figure for your claim before they've seen your medical evidence. Useful things to ask:

• How much of your work is NSW motor accident (CTP) claims?
• Who will run my file day to day, and who do I call with a question?
• How will you keep me updated, and how often?
• Can we work by phone, email and video if travel is hard for me?
• How will you be paid, and can I have a written costs disclosure before I sign?

Do you need a personal injury lawyer?

Not always. If your claim has been accepted, payments and treatment are coming through and your injuries are settling, many people manage without one. SIRA funds a free CTP Legal Advisory Service for statutory benefits questions, and CTP Assist on 1300 656 919 can explain how the scheme works.

A lawyer is more likely to help if the insurer refuses the claim, or says your injury is a threshold injury and your doctors disagree; if benefits stop; if fault is argued; if an offer arrives; or if your injury is serious enough that a damages claim may be open.

If what you need now is treatment or a Certificate of Fitness, a doctor experienced with CTP claims is the better first call. We can point you to one, and to allied health such as physiotherapy and psychology.

Costs

Our claim check is free, with no obligation. If you go on to speak with a lawyer, costs are agreed between you and them. Many motor accident lawyers offer no win, no fee arrangements, which generally means professional fees are payable only if the claim succeeds; other costs, such as medical reports, may still apply. CTP legal costs are also regulated. Get the terms in a written costs disclosure first.

How the free claim check fits in

CTP Lawyer is not a law firm and doesn't give legal or medical advice. It's a free NSW service for people hurt in motor accidents. We look at your injuries and where your claim is up to, then point you to what it needs: doctors and allied health for treatment and evidence and, when the case calls for it, an independent lawyer experienced in motor accident claims. You choose whether to go ahead.