Everyone in New South Wales is required to have CTP or Compulsory Third Party Insurance in case of a motor vehicle accident. CTP insurance is intended to help drivers, passenger, pedestrians and anyone else injured in a motor vehicle accident, providing them with financial assistance to support them while they recover. If you have been injured in a motor vehicle accident then there are a few things that can dramatically influence your CTP insurance benefits and payout.
What are the CTP benefits you may be eligible for?
Before we look at what may influence your CTP payout it is important to understand what CTP insurance covers. Depending on your circumstances you may be eligible for:
- Reimbursement for medical expenses. Recovering from an injury can be an expensive affair, which is why support for medical costs is one of the primary functions of CTP insurance. This includes check-ups, treatments and rehabilitation.
- Care support expenses. If your injury was particularly severe you may need to have in home support and personal care, which can be covered by CTP insurance if it was deemed necessary and reasonable.
- Income support payments. Income support is calculated based on your earnings before the accident. For the first 13 weeks you may be eligible for 95% of your pre-accident earnings, then 85% up to week 26.
- Lump sum compensation. If your injuries are severe and you were deemed not at fault for the accident, then you may also be eligible for a lump-sum compensation payout. This can be a significant amount payed out to victims who have a whole person impairment of 11% or more as determined by an independent medical assessor.
It is also important to note that since CTP insurance is intended to offer support for an injury it does not cover things like damage to your vehicle or property damage.
What will influence your CTP payout?
There are three major factors that can influence the extent of your CTP payout. This includes
- Fault: Whether you were at fault, partially at fault or not at fault for the accident can dramatically change what you may be eligible to claim on your CTP insurance. If you were deemed at fault you may have your income support payments capped at 6 months and have to claim from your own insurance, rather than the insurance of the other driver. Similarly, you may not be eligible for a lump sum compensation payout in the form of common law damages.
- Severity of your injuries: The severity of your injuries is a key component to your CTP payout. If your injuries are assessed to be non-minor and your whole person impairment is more than 10% then you may be eligible for longer support and can claim damages for past and future economic loss as well as non-economic loss such as pain and suffering.
- Pre-accident earnings: Your pre-accident earnings will be a key component in calculating your benefits, particularly your income support payments, which are calculated as a percentage of your pre-accident earnings.