If you’ve decided to pursue a motor accident compensation claim then the extent of your benefits and ability to claim common law damages will be determined by the severity of your injuries. When making a claim your injuries can be determined as minor or major (non-minor). Below is an outline of how their determination can affect your motor accident compensation claim.
Minor Injuries Motor Accident Compensation Claim
What is a minor injury?
After a motor vehicle accident you will need to get a trained medical assessment to diagnose the severity of your injury. Minor injuries tend to have a number of shared characteristics including:
- People with minor injuries tend to recover well with assistance and treatment
- They can manage their symptoms on their own or with some support
- They recover after a short time or can even return to work immediately
There are two main types of minor injury:
- Soft tissue injuries: These are injuries to soft tissues in your body such as muscles, tendons, ligaments, fat or fibrous tissues. Muscle strain is a common soft tissue injury, such as whiplash.
- Minor psychological or psychiatric injury: Traumatic experiences like car crashes can affect mood and behaviour, resulting in a number of psychological symptoms like sadness, fear, anger or guilt. If these feelings are not classified as a psychiatric illness then they will most likely be classified as non-minor.
What can someone claim for a minor injury?
Compensation benefits for people with minor injuries are:
- Limited to compensation for up to 26 weeks after a crash including weekly income support payments, medical and treatment costs, domestic and personal care services.
- It is possible to receive treatment and care benefits beyond 26 weeks if it is necessary for your recovery.
Major or Non-Minor Injuries Motor Accident Compensation Claim
A major or non-minor injury is more severe than a minor injury and can entitle a person to extended personal injury benefits and apply for additional common law damages. If a person does not claim common law damages then their weekly benefits will normally be capped at two years. If a person does intend to claim common law damages then the extent of these benefits will depend on the level of permanent impairment caused by the accident as determined by a trained medical assessor.
Claims for a person with 10% or less permanent impairment
If the person has been assessed to have 10% or less permanent impairment from the accident then they:
- May be able to claim both past and future economic loss
- May be able to receive weekly income support payments up to 3 years after the accident, or until their common law damages claim has been settled
- Will need to wait 20 months after the date of the accident to claim common law damages
Claims for a person with 11% or more permanent impairment
If a person has 11% or more permanent impairment resulting from a non-minor injury then they:
- May be able to claim both past and future economic loss
- May be able to claim a lump sum for non-economic loss (pain and suffering)
- May be able to receive weekly income support payments up to 5 years after the accident, or until their common law damages suit has been settledCan make a common law damages claim earlier than 20 months after the date of accident
The information is current as at the date of publication of this article. The above article is of a general nature only and does not constitute legal advice. Law Advice Compensation Lawyers are experts in motor accident claims. For a free, no obligation assessment of your motor accident claim call us on 1800 122 555 or complete our Free Claim Advice Form and get the compensation you deserve.