When you pay your car registration in Queensland each year, you may not realise you’re also paying your CTP insurance. CTP insurance comes into play if you’re injured in a road accident. Here’s how the scheme works, who is covered and what you need to claim.
What Is CTP?
CTP stands for compulsory third party. Every registered vehicle in Queensland is required to have it. CTP insurance premiums are included as part of your vehicle registration fee. That means if your car is registered, you already have CTP cover.
CTP Insurance Defined
What CTP insurance covers is bodily injuries. It covers people who are injured in motor vehicle accidents in Queensland, including drivers, passengers, pedestrians, and cyclists. It does not cover damage to vehicles or property. CTP is administered by the Motor Accident Insurance Commission (MAIC) under the Motor Accident Insurance Act 1994 (QLD).
CTP insurance exists because road accidents are frequent and can cause serious injuries that are expensive to treat. Without CTP insurance, people injured through no fault of their own may be unable to recover their losses. CTP ensures that there is always a pool of insurance coverage attached to every vehicle on Queensland roads, regardless of whether the at-fault driver has personal funds to pay.
The Most Common Misconception
CTP is frequently confused with comprehensive car insurance or third party property insurance. Those cover damage to your vehicle or someone else’s vehicle. CTP covers bodily injury to people. You can have one without the other, but Queensland law requires you to have CTP.
Who Manages CTP Claims in Queensland?
Queensland’s CTP scheme is not run by one insurer. A group of private insurers are licensed by MAIC to issue CTP policies and manage claims. When you register your vehicle in Queensland, you are issued a policy from one of these licensed insurers.
The licensed CTP insurers operating in Queensland are:
- QBE – Licensed CTP insurer
- Suncorp – Licensed CTP insurer
- Allianz – Licensed CTP insurer
- Nominal Defendant / MAIC – Steps in for uninsured vehicles
The insurer you need to deal with after an accident depends on which vehicle caused the accident, not which insurer covers your own vehicle. If another driver hits you, the claim goes to the CTP insurer of the other driver. If you are injured in a hit-and-run where the at-fault vehicle cannot be identified, there is a separate process through MAIC as the scheme’s insurer of last resort, also referred to as the Nominal Defendant.
Who Is Covered by CTP Insurance?
Coverage is broad. CTP does not just protect drivers. Anyone injured in a Queensland road accident involving a registered motor vehicle can potentially claim, regardless of which vehicle they were in or whether they were in a vehicle at all.
- Passengers injured in any vehicle, including the at-fault vehicle, in most circumstances
- Pedestrians struck by a vehicle on a road or in a road-related area
- Cyclists injured in a collision involving a motor vehicle
- Drivers injured by the fault of another driver
- Motorcycle riders injured in accidents involving other vehicles
- People in other vehicles that were not at fault, or only partially at fault
Coverage for the at-fault driver themselves is more limited. The scheme is primarily designed to compensate people who have been injured by another person’s driving. If you caused the accident and you are the only person injured, your own CTP policy will not cover your losses in the same way. Personal accident or income protection insurance is the relevant cover for that situation.
Unregistered and Unidentified Vehicles
In circumstances where the vehicle that injured you was unregistered, or where you were injured by a vehicle that can’t be identified (hit and run case) you may be entitled to make a claim against the Nominal Defendant. The Nominal Defendant is administered by MAIC. Special rules of notification apply to claims against the Nominal Defendant and time limits are strict.
Make an Enquiry
Our firm practises exclusively in personal injury law, including motor vehicle accident and CTP claims across Queensland. If you would like to understand how the law applies to your situation, contact our office for further information
What CTP Covers and What It Does Not
CTP Covers
- Medical and hospital expenses related to the injury
- Lost income while unable to work
- Rehabilitation and therapy costs
- Attendant care if needed
- Pain and suffering compensation (for serious injuries)
- Long-term economic loss (for serious injuries)
- Funeral expenses in fatal accident cases
- Dependency claims by surviving family members
CTP Does Not Cover
- Damage to your vehicle
- Damage to any other property
- The at-fault driver’s own bodily injury (in most cases)
- Injuries not connected to the motor vehicle accident
- Accidents that did not involve a motor vehicle
- Injuries sustained while committing a serious offence
What you can recover under a CTP claim depends greatly on whether your injury is considered ‘minor’ or ‘serious’. This distinction matters a lot, and it is explained in the next section.
How to Make a CTP Claim
When making a claim under CTP in Queensland there is a required sequence. It is important to follow this process and meet time limits along the way.
- Get medical attention immediately
Visit a doctor ASAP after the accident, even if you think you are OK. Some injuries, particularly soft tissue injuries and psychological injuries do not become apparent until sometime after the accident occurred. Having a medical record from early after the accident strengthens your claim. Keep all receipts and records. - Collect accident information
Get the other driver’s name, address, and vehicle registration details. Make sure that you note the time, date, and location of the accident. If there are witnesses, get their contact details. Take photos of the scene and vehicles if it is safe to do so. If anyone is injured report the accident to police. - Identify the correct CTP insurer
Your claim goes to the CTP insurer of the vehicle that caused the accident, not your own insurer. The vehicle’s registration number lets you identify its insurer through the MAIC website. If the vehicle was unregistered or cannot be identified, contact MAIC directly about the Nominal Defendant process. - Lodge a Notice of Accident Claim
The formal claim starts by lodging a Notice of Accident Claim Form (NOAC) with the relevant insurer. This form sets out the circumstances of the accident and your initial injury details. Time limits apply and missing them can affect your claim, so do not delay this step. - Claim assessment and initial benefits
The insurer will consider who was at fault for your accident and either admit or deny liability. If liability is admitted, the insurer is required to fund reasonable and necessary treatment and rehabilitation expenses. In addition to funding initial benefits, you can also proceed with a claim to seek a lump sum of damages against the insurer. - Negotiate settlement or proceed to court
Most CTP injury claims are resolved by negotiated settlement. If settlement cannot be reached, the claim proceeds through the court process. Before court proceedings can commence, the legislation requires a pre-court process, which includes a compulsory conference between the parties. The vast majority (more than 99%) of claims settle without having to go to Court.
Time Limits You Need to Know
| Action | Time Limit |
|---|---|
| Notify the insurer of the accident (Nominal Defendant claims) | As soon as practicable. For hit and run or unregistered vehicle claims, delay in notifying MAIC can affect your ability to claim. |
| Lodge the Notice of Accident Claim (NOAC) | Within 9 months of the accident, or 1 month of first consulting a lawyer, whichever is earlier. Earlier is better. For MAIC/Nominal Defendant claims, there is a hard time limit of 9 months to lodge a NOAC. |
| Commence court proceedings | 3 years from the date of the accident (standard limitation period). Extensions are rare and not guaranteed. |
| Children and people under a legal disability | Special rules apply. The limitation period generally runs from when the person turns 18. Get specific advice. |
Never Assume You Have Time
The 3-year period doesn’t sound too bad but keep in mind the Notice of Accident Claim (NOAC) must be lodged within 9 months of the accident. Evidence degrades over time. Witnesses become harder to locate and medical records become harder to reconstruct. The earlier you get advice the better.
What If You Were At Fault?
If you caused the accident, you’ll need to take extra steps. CTP is designed primarily to compensate people injured by other drivers. Your own CTP insurer will not pay out to you for your own injuries in the same way it would for someone you injured.
However, accidents aren’t always 100 per cent someone else’s fault. Queensland law allows for contributory negligence, which means a court or insurer can apportion fault between parties. If you were 20 per cent to blame and someone else 80 per cent at fault, you’ll have compensation reduced by 20 per cent. It is not eliminated entirely.
If you were a passenger in a vehicle that caused the accident you can still generally make a claim. Just because the driver of the car you were travelling in caused the accident doesn’t mean you can’t claim CTP compensation for your injuries.
Contributory Negligence and Your Compensation Claim
Do not be discouraged from making a claim if you believe you may have been partially at fault for the accident. Fault is a legal and factual question, not one that can always be determined at the scene. Insurers will conduct their own liability investigation. If you are found to have contributed to the accident, compensation is reduced proportionally, not eliminated. Get advice before accepting any liability that has not been properly investigated.
CTP and Common Law Claims
For serious injuries, the CTP scheme leads into a common law claim where you can seek damages for the full range of your losses. Common law damages in a CTP context include pain and suffering, economic loss (past and future), medical expenses, and the cost of care and assistance and legal costs.
To succeed in a common law CTP claim, you need to establish that another party was at fault, that their fault caused your injuries, and that you have suffered quantifiable loss as a result.
The pre-court process
Before you can commence court proceedings for a serious CTP injury, Queensland law requires the parties to go through a defined pre-court process. This includes the exchange of information, access to medical records, and a compulsory conference, which is a structured negotiation between the parties usually attended by their legal representatives.
The majority of serious CTP claims are resolved at or before the compulsory conference stage. Court proceedings are commenced when the pre-court process does not produce a settlement that both parties can accept.
Why Legal Representation Matters in Serious Injury Claims
CTP insurers have experienced claims managers and legal teams who handle large numbers of these matters regularly. People without legal representation are at a significant disadvantage in the pre-court process and in any negotiation. No win no fee arrangements are available for CTP claims on our website, which means legal representation does not require you to pay upfront.
CTP Insurance FAQs
Yes. It is common for injuries suffered in car accidents to develop or appear days or even weeks after the actual event. Conditions such as whiplash and soft-tissue injuries often fall into this category. Remember the time limit for making your claim runs from the date of the accident. If your injuries become worse and you believe your injury is actually more serious than originally assessed, you can apply to have the classification changed. The most important thing is to visit your doctor as soon as possible and keep visiting them as your symptoms develop.
Generally, yes. Passengers are covered under the CTP scheme even when the driver of their own vehicle caused the accident. The claim would go to the CTP insurer of the at-fault vehicle, which in this case would be the vehicle you were travelling in. There can be complications where passengers are also found to have contributed to the accident in some way, but the fact that you were in the at-fault vehicle does not, by itself, prevent a claim.
Yes. Cyclists injured in collisions involving registered motor vehicles are covered under Queensland’s CTP scheme. Your bicycle does not need to be registered. The claim goes to the CTP insurer of the motor vehicle involved. Cyclists are treated as third parties for the purposes of the scheme. Cyclists sometimes have stronger claims than they initially expect, particularly where a vehicle has turned across their path or failed to give way.
Any vehicle registered in Queensland must have a current CTP policy attached to it. You can find out who the insurer is by using the lookup tool on the website of Motor Accident Insurers’ Compulsory Third Party Insurance Commission (MAIC). You’ll need the registration number of the vehicle. If the vehicle wasn’t registered (ie. was unregistered or stolen), or if it left the scene then you will need to make a claim against the Nominal Defendant (also administered by MAIC). Nominal Defendant claims are often used for hit and run accidents. Remember to contact MAIC as soon as possible as there are strict time limits that apply to Nominal Defendant claims.
CTP is a separate product from your comprehensive car insurance. Making a CTP claim will not normally affect your car insurance premium. CTP insurance is different to your standard comprehensive car insurance policy. If you make a claim under the CTP scheme it will not affect your no-claim bonus as the claim is paid by the at-fault vehicle’s insurer, not your own car insurer. If you also have a comprehensive claim for damage to your vehicle this is a separate issue and may be treated differently by your car insurer. Check your policy wording or contact your car insurer to be sure.
Questions about a CTP claim?
Our firm practises exclusively in personal injury law, including motor vehicle accident and CTP claims across Queensland. If you would like to understand how the law applies to your situation, contact our office for further information.
