TRUCK ACCIDENT INJURY COMPENSATION

• Immediately contact emergency services. In most circumstances the Police, Ambulance and Fire Brigade will be required, especially if any form of fuel was being hauled by the truck.
• Be sure to take photos of the crash scene from different angles. Noting that the spread of the damage from the accident is likely to be quite large, if pictures are too difficult to capture the scene, take a video recording instead.
• Make sure you obtain the details of the other vehicle(s) involved in the crash. To make an injury compensation claim you’ll need to know the make, model, type and colour of the other vehicle as well as the registration.
• You’ll also need the identification details of the other driver who was in the crash. We’d recommend that you take a photo of their drivers licence to avoid any issues in identifying them at a later date. More specifically however you need the driver’s full name, their address, phone number and CTP insurer details.
• Its rare that the Police would not be called to the scene of a truck accident or to speak with you in the hospital after the event if you were injured. However, in circumstances where the Police do not attend the scene, its important that you report the accident to the Police within 28 days of the accident. Once reported, make sure you obtain an ‘event number’ as you’ll need this to lodge a motor accident compensation claim. You can report a truck accident to the NSW Police by calling the Police Assistance Line or alternatively by attending your local Police station.
• You’ll need to obtain a medical certificate from your General Practitioner or hospital where you were treated immediately after the accident. The medical certificate is known as a ‘Certificate of Fitness’ and details your injuries, capacity for work and future treatment needs. You’ll need this certificate to lodge your first motor accident compensation claim form. This form is known as an Application for Personal Injury Benefits.
• Before submitting your claim form and medical certificate to the CTP insurer for the person you consider to be at-fault for the accident, call Advantage legal or jump online and book a free consultation with one of our senior lawyers. We’ll look at all your documents to make sure they are accurate and provide you with a free confidential advice on your rights and entitlements.

You have 28 days to lodge an Application for Personal Injury Benefits on the CTP greenslip insurer for the vehicle that you allege to be at-fault for the accident. If this deadline is missed, the CTP insurer will only back pay your wages to the date of the accident if a full and satisfactory explanation for the delay in lodging the claim is provided. If a full and satisfactory explanation is not provided, the claim can still be lodged up to 3 months after the accident, however the insurer will only commence weekly wage payments from the date the claim is received.

The NSW motor accident compensation scheme also gives people who are seriously injured (i.e. who have not sustained a ‘threshold injury’) and who did not cause the accident the opportunity to claim a lump sum compensation amount in the form of a damages claim. The claim is known as an ‘Application for Damages Under Common Law’ and is subject to a three year limitation period on commencing Court proceedings. It should be noted that there is no longer any limitation period for commencing proceedings in the Personal Injury Commission.

All of the documents required to lodge a motor accident compensation claim are found at www.sira.nsw.gov.au. All of the documents required to lodge a motor accident compensation claim are found at www.sira.nsw.gov.au. Initially, you’ll need the following documents:

• An Application for Personal Injury Benefits; and
• A Certificate of Fitness filled in by your General Practitioner

If you’ve sustained injuries which are classified as ‘non-threshold injuries’ and are not at-fault for the accident, you may also be entitled to a lump sum compensation pay out. To pursue this claim, you’ll need to lodge an:

• Application for Damages Under Common Law

It is recommended that you obtain legal advice from Advantage Legal before submitting any of these documents to the CTP insurer. Injured people commonly complete these forms on their own or obtain the assistance of their General Practitioner. In doing so, you may be submitting a claim with insufficient or incorrect information which could cost you tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars in benefits and/or compensation. Advantage Legal will review your documents and make sure that everything is correct to ensure that you claim everything you are entitled to.

Truck accident compensation can be complicated, often involving more than one form of compensation entitlement. For example, you may have compensation entitlements under the NSW motor accident compensation scheme, the NSW workers compensation scheme, under a third-party insurance policy and under a Total and Permanent Disability policy. You should seek legal advice on the compensation entitlements available to you based on your particular circumstances, even if you believe that you might be at-fault for the accident.

The NSW motor accident injury compensation scheme has been designed to assist people with minor injuries (known as ‘threshold injuries’) to return to work promptly after their accident and to compensate people who have been more seriously injured. The three most common scenarios that are encountered in the NSW motor accident compensation scheme are below:

• • Mostly At-Fault or At-Fault – If you were mostly at-fault or at-fault for your truck accident, the NSW motor accident compensation scheme entitles you to claim up to 52 weeks of benefits from the CTP insurer of your vehicle. Included in this entitlement is partial income replacement, treatment and personal/home care.

• • Not At-Fault but with Threshold Injuries – NSW motor accident compensation legislation prescribes that only people who are not at-fault and who have sustained an injury which is ‘not a threshold injury’ are entitled to claim lump sum compensation benefits. As such, if you were not at-fault but only sustained a ‘threshold injury’ (a term defined in legislation) then you are restricted to claiming up to 52 weeks of statutory benefits. This includes partial income replacement, treatment and personal/home care.
    
    
  • Not At-Fault with Non-Threshold Injuries – If you were not at-fault for your accident and injuries which are considered to be ‘not a threshold injury’ for example broken bones, amputations, spinal cord damage or a post-traumatic stress disorder, you may be entitled to claim:
    
    
    • Treatment
    • Personal and home care
    • Partial income replacement
    • Lump sum compensation for past and future income loss including superannuation
    • Lump sum compensation for pain and suffering

From 1 April 2023, the legislative term ‘minor injury’ was changed to ‘threshold injury’. The new term applies to all current and future motor accident injury claims in NSW. For more information about what constitutes a threshold injury, please refer to the FAQ – What is a ‘threshold injury’?

The term ‘threshold injury’ is defined in NSW motor accident injury compensation legislation. People who have sustained a ‘threshold injury’ are limited to 52 weeks of benefits. Examples of injuries which are considered not to be a ‘threshold injury’ are as follows:

• • Physical Injuries – broken bones, spinal cord damage, spinal nerve root with radiculopathy, brain damage, substantial scarring or burns.
    
    
  • Psychological Injuries – depression or post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

The concept of threshold injury is commonly misunderstood by CTP insurers often resulting in injuries being incorrectly categorised as ‘threshold injuries’ when in fact evidence of a ‘non-threshold’ injury is present. If your injuries are incorrectly categorised as ‘threshold injuries’, you may be foregoing tens or even hundreds of thousands of dollars in compensation and benefits.

If you receive a ‘threshold injury’ liability notice from your CTP insurer, we recommend that you seek urgent legal advice from Advantage Legal. In most circumstances, you have 28 days to lodge an internal review with the CTP insurer to dispute their decision in order to preserve your rights.

Nearly all decisions that a CTP insurer makes on a NSW motor accident injury compensation claim are reviewable in the Personal Injury Commission or Court. The CTP insurer will provide you with notice of their decision in writing. You’re entitled to challenge this decision by way of internal review within 28 days. If the review is not overturned or amended to your satisfaction, you may then lodge a dispute with the Personal Injury Commission.

The internal review process and proceedings in the Personal Injury Commission or Court can be long, complex and stressful, particularly for an injured person who is unfamiliar with the process, rules and regulations that need to be adhered to.

The Advantage Legal team can manage the formalities of the dispute resolution system on your behalf. If you’d like a free initial consultation and confidential advice on your claim, get in touch with our team.

If you were injured in motor accident, sustained an injury which is classified as ‘not a threshold injury’ (a legislative definition) and were not at-fault for the accident, you may be entitled to lump sum compensation. Depending on the circumstances of your accident, you may also have multiple claims that can be pursued.

At Advantage Legal, we believe that a compensation claim should be all about you. We spend time with you to understand the circumstances of your accident and how its has impacted you. We’ll develop a strategic plan and advice just for you to make sure that you claim every dollar you are entitled to.

When answering the question ‘how much is my claim worth?’ factors such as your age, injury type and severity, your pre-injury earnings, how long you were absent from work, your plans for future employment and whether you are entitled to claim pain and suffering are all relevant.

Our senior legal team have the experience and expertise to maximise your compensation payout. So if you’d prefer to be represented by a team of lawyers you put you first and don’t cut corners, get in touch with Advantage Legal. Our initial consultation is free and we will act for you on a no-win, no-fee basis.

A lump sum compensation claim arising from a truck accident in NSW is known as an Application for Damages Under Common Law. Your personal circumstances such as the need for surgery, the CTP insurer’s attitude towards settlement negotiations and time limitations contained in the motor accident compensation legislation impact the duration of how long a claim will take to complete.

Generally speaking, a claim will take on average between 2 to 3 years from the date of the accident to complete.

The NSW motor accident compensation scheme permits injured people involved in truck accidents to claim a lump sum payout in circumstances where their injuries are classified as ‘not a threshold injury’ and if they were not at-fault for the accident. The claim is known as an Application for Damages Under Common Law. If you were to pursue this kind of compensation claim you would typically undertake the following:

• Retain a lawyer.
• Identify the CTP insurer for the at-fault driver and lodge an Application for Damages Under Common Law.
• Obtain factual, medical and economic loss evidence in support of your claim.
• Be examined by a number of medico-legal experts to determine the extent of your injuries.
• Have any medical disputes resolved by the Personal Injury Commission.
• In circumstances where settlement is unachievable, request the Personal Injury Commission or Court to resolve any disputes which remain between the CTP insurer and you.

Typically, NSW based law firms will represent you on your Application for Damages Under Common Law on a no-win, no-fee basis. This claim is for lump sum compensation for injuries arising from your truck accident. If you’d like to know more about no-win, no-fee, please see our FAQ ‘What does No-Win, No-Fee mean?’

Solicitors are entitled to charge you by any means you agree to that has not been prohibited in legislation. Common billing methods include hourly rates, event or stage-based fees and fixed fees. When you consult a lawyer, you’ll be provided with a document called a ‘cost agreement and disclosure’. The details of how the law firm charges will be contained within that document. Make sure you read it closely before signing.

At Advantage Legal, we’re transparent with our clients at all times regarding our billing arrangements and you’ll only be liable for our professional fees and disbursements when your claim successfully concludes. That means that there are no interim payments throughout your claim and if you’re ever wanting an update on our professional fees, all you have to do is ask.

Contact the Advantage Legal team now for representation you can rely on.

The phrase ‘no-win, no-fee’ is typically used in NSW personal injury cases to offer legal services to injured people where the law firm will only ask for payment at the successful conclusion of the claim. It is important to note however that there is no universally accepted definition of no-win, no-fee which means that injured people need to closely examine the detail of the no-win, no-fee arrangement that they sign up for.

Advantage Legal has a ‘no-win, no-fee promise’ which means that you’ll only pay for our professional fees and disbursements if your claim is successful. Many law firms do not include disbursements in their no-win, no-fee offering, meaning that if you lose your case, you’re still liable for tens of thousands of dollars. So make sure that you pursue your claim with Advantage Legal, the team who make your compensation claim all about you to maximise your compensation entitlements.

Being involved in a truck accident often gives rise to many forms of compensation entitlements. Your personal and accident circumstances will play a significant role in the advice provided to you and the claim(s) that you pursue. So whilst you may have rights under the NSW motor accident compensation scheme, you may also have benefits and entitlements though the following:

• The NSW workers compensation scheme
• Public liability insurance
• TPD insurance
• Income protection insurance

Contact an Accredited Specialist at Advantage Legal to obtain a confidential advice and free initial consultation on your truck accident injury rights and entitlements.

An Accredited Specialist in Personal Injury Law is a solicitor who has considerable experience and expertise in the field of NSW personal injury law. They have also been recognised by the NSW Law Society as fulfilling a very specific criteria such as passing a rigorous assessment process and completing additional legal education. People who attain specialist accreditation from the NSW Law Society are considered leaders in their field who are capable of providing legal advice on technical or complex NSW compensation claims.

Advantage Legal’s Practice Principals, Ana Jaglic and Leigh Davidson are both senior lawyers and Accredited Specialists in NSW Personal Injury Law.