What Can You Actually Claim After a Car Accident in Queensland?
If another driver caused your accident in Queensland, you can claim full compensation for your losses under the compulsory third party (CTP) scheme. Where the insurer admits fault, rehabilitation costs are covered from early in the process. The full claim covers medical expenses, lost income, care costs, and pain and suffering. The more serious the injury and the more complex the evidence, the longer the process takes, but the pathway to common law damages is open to all injured persons regardless of the type of injury, as long as the other party was at fault.
How Queensland CTP Works
Queensland’s compulsory third party (CTP) scheme is governed by the Motor Accident Insurance Act 1994 (QLD). Every registered vehicle in Queensland carries CTP insurance. The premium is collected as part of the vehicle registration, so every registered vehicle is automatically insured.
If you are injured in a road accident caused by another person’s fault, your claim goes to the CTP insurer of the at-fault vehicle. In Queensland, all injured persons who have been injured through another party’s fault are entitled to pursue full common law damages. There is no classification system in Queensland CTP that limits or restricts access to the common law pathway based on the type or severity of injury.
| A KEY FEATURE OF QUEENSLAND CTP |
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| Where the insurer admits liability, or at least partial liability, they are required to fund reasonable rehabilitation expenses while the claim is being assessed. This means treatment, physiotherapy, specialist appointments, and other reasonable rehabilitation costs can be covered from early in the claim. You do not have to wait for a final settlement before rehabilitation expenses are addressed. |
The pre-court claims process is governed by the Motor Accident Insurance Act 1994 (QLD) (PIPA). Before court proceedings can begin, the parties must exchange evidence and attend a compulsory conference. The majority of Queensland CTP claims resolve at or before the compulsory conference stage.
What You Can Claim
Where the other party is at fault, compensation in a Queensland CTP claim covers the full range of losses caused by the injury. The categories below apply across all CTP claims, regardless of the nature or severity of the injury.
Rehabilitation expenses (funded upfront where liability is admitted)
- Rehabilitation expenses: Where the insurer admits liability, they must fund reasonable rehabilitation expenses while the claim is being resolved. This covers physiotherapy, specialist appointments, allied health services, and other treatment directed at recovery. This is not part of the final settlement. It is an obligation that kicks in when the insurer accepts fault and is separate from the damages assessment.
Common law damages
The following heads of damage are assessed as part of the common law claim and paid as part of the settlement.
- Past medical expenses: All reasonable medical, hospital, pharmaceutical, and allied health costs from the date of the accident to the date of settlement. Includes GP visits, specialist consultations, physiotherapy, psychology, imaging, and medications prescribed for the injury. Medicare recoveries are accounted for.
- Future medical expenses: Projected costs of future medical treatment the injury is expected to require, based on specialist medical evidence about prognosis and likely future treatment needs. Discounted to present value.
- Past lost income: Income already lost from the date of the accident to settlement date. Calculated on evidence of pre-accident earnings: payslips, tax returns, employment records. Net of tax. Includes superannuation contributions lost during the period of incapacity.
- Future loss of earning capacity: Often the largest component of a significant claim. Covers the impact of the injury on the ability to earn income from settlement to the end of working life. Requires evidence of pre-accident career trajectory and post-accident work capacity. Actuarial and vocational expert evidence is used in significant claims.
- Care and assistance: Costs of care required as a result of the injury. Covers both professional care services and gratuitous care provided by family members or friends. Gratuitous care is calculated at a rate set under the Civil Liability Act 2003 (QLD). Requires evidence of functional limitations and records of care provided.
- Home modifications: Reasonable costs of modifying the home to accommodate a permanent disability caused by the injury. Based on occupational therapy assessments and contractor quotes.
- Out-of-pocket expenses: Identifiable expenses caused directly by the accident and injury: travel to appointments, aids and equipment, over-the-counter medications, and similar costs. Documented by receipts or reasonable estimates.
Pain and suffering (non-economic loss, general damages)
Non-economic loss, also called pain and suffering or general damages, compensates for the physical pain, psychological impact, loss of enjoyment of life, and loss of amenity caused by the injury. It is assessed separately from economic losses.
Queensland does not use a statutory threshold for general damages in the way some other states do. Instead, general damages for pain, suffering and loss of enjoyment of life are assessed by reference to an Injury Scale Value, or ISV.
An ISV is a whole number from 0 to 100 that reflects the seriousness of the injury and its impact on the injured person. The relevant injury category is selected from the Queensland regulations, and the medical evidence is used to decide where within the relevant ISV range the injury sits. The ISV is then converted into a dollar amount using the indexed table that applies to the date of the incident, not the date the claim settles or the date judgment is given.
For example, assume a person injured in Queensland between 1 July 2025 and 30 June 2026 suffers:
- a moderate wrist injury to their dominant hand, assessed within an ISV range of 6 to 15; and
- a minor shoulder injury, assessed within an ISV range of 0 to 5.
The wrist injury would usually be treated as the dominant injury because it has the higher ISV range and the greater functional impact. The shoulder injury is not simply added on as a separate ISV. Instead, the overall ISV is usually assessed within the range for the dominant injury, with the non-dominant injury potentially justifying a higher point within that range.
For example, if the wrist injury alone may have justified ISV 10, the additional shoulder symptoms may support an overall assessment of ISV 12, depending on the medical evidence and the overall impact on the injured person.
For an incident occurring between 1 July 2025 and 30 June 2026, an ISV of 12 is calculated as:
$21,400 + ((12 – 10) x $2,710) = $26,820
So, in that example, the general damages figure would be $26,820. If the incident occurred in a different financial year, the same ISV could produce a different dollar amount because the applicable indexed table is the one tied to the date the injury arose.
Fault and How It Affects the Claim
Queensland’s CTP scheme is based on fault. Where the other party caused the accident, or contributed to it, the claim against their CTP insurer proceeds. The extent of the other party’s fault is a central issue in every claim.
Where fault is admitted
When the insurer admits liability, or admits partial liability, two things follow. Rehabilitation expenses begin to be funded. And the claim moves into evidence gathering and assessment toward a settlement. Most claims with clear liability resolve within twelve to thirty months, depending on injury complexity.
Where fault is disputed
Disputed liability is the biggest single cause of delay in Queensland CTP claims. Where the insurer argues the accident was not their insured’s fault, or that the claimant contributed significantly to the accident, the parties must build a liability case before the claim can advance. This adds time and requires additional evidence.
Contributory negligence
If you contributed to the accident or to the severity of your own injury by failing to take reasonable care, your compensation is reduced by the proportion of fault attributed to you under the Civil Liability Act 2003 (QLD). A 25% contributory negligence finding reduces a $400,000 claim to $300,000 received. This does not eliminate the claim. Insurers routinely raise contributory negligence in negotiations. Whether it would succeed depends on the specific facts.
| DO NOT ACCEPT FAULT AT THE SCENE |
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| Fault in road accidents is a legal determination made through investigation, not what a driver says at the scene. Keep communications factual at the scene: exchange details, check on welfare, note the circumstances. Do not apologise or accept responsibility. Statements made at the scene can complicate the liability position. |
What CTP Does Not Cover
CTP is a bodily injury scheme only. The following fall outside the scheme.
- Vehicle damage. Damage to your car, the other driver’s car, or any other property is not covered by CTP. Property damage goes through comprehensive car insurance or third-party property insurance.
- Accidents where no other party is at fault. If you caused the accident and were the only party injured, your own CTP policy does not pay out to you in the same way. CTP is designed to compensate people injured by another person’s negligent driving.
- Injuries not caused by the accident. Pre-existing conditions not aggravated by the accident, or health issues that arise independently, are not covered.
- Injuries from unregistered or unidentified vehicles. Where the at-fault vehicle was unregistered, or cannot be identified (such as in a hit and run), the claim goes through the Nominal Defendant process administered by MAIC. Strict and short notification requirements apply. Contact MAIC as soon as possible in these situations.
- Income earned unlawfully. Under the Civil Liability Act 2003 (QLD), damages for lost income cannot be based on earnings that were generated illegally.
Other Compensation Pathways That May Apply
A CTP claim is often one part of a larger picture. Depending on the circumstances of the accident, one or more of the following may also be available alongside the CTP claim.
- WorkCover (if driving for work): If the accident happened while you were driving as part of your employment, travelling between work locations, or on a work-related journey covered under the Workers’ Compensation and Rehabilitation Act 2003 (QLD), a WorkCover claim may run alongside the CTP claim. WorkCover can fund income replacement from the date of injury without waiting for the CTP claim to resolve. The two claims interact when it comes to calculating final compensation, so managing them together from the outset produces better outcomes.
- Total and permanent disability (TPD) through superannuation: If your injuries mean you cannot return to work permanently, you may have a TPD claim through your superannuation fund. TPD claims are separate from CTP, governed by your fund’s policy and the Superannuation Industry (Supervision) Act 1993. They have their own time limits running from the date of the fund’s rejection of a claim, not from the accident date.
- Income protection insurance: If you hold income protection insurance through your superannuation fund or as a standalone policy, it may provide monthly income replacement while you cannot work. Income protection claims can often be progressed while the CTP claim is running, providing financial support during the process.
- Vehicle damage through comprehensive car insurance: Repairs or replacement of your vehicle go through your comprehensive car insurer, not through the CTP scheme. If the other driver was at fault and is identified, your insurer may seek to recover costs from that driver’s insurer. This runs entirely separately from the personal injury claim.
| MANAGING MULTIPLE CLAIMS |
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| Where both a CTP claim and a WorkCover claim are available, getting advice early on how they interact is important. Payments received under WorkCover during the CTP process affect the final settlement calculation. Managing both claims together, rather than treating them independently, generally produces better outcomes. |
Frequently Asked Questions
No. Queensland does not classify CTP injuries as minor or serious for the purpose of determining what you can claim. That classification framework exists in NSW but does not apply in Queensland. In Queensland, all injured persons where the other party is at fault are entitled to pursue common law damages, including medical expenses, lost income, care costs, and pain and suffering. The complexity of the claim and the amount recoverable will reflect the actual severity and impact of the injury, but there is no classification that restricts access to the common law pathway.
Yes. Psychological injuries, including PTSD, anxiety disorders, and depression caused or materially contributed to by the accident, are compensable under Queensland’s CTP scheme. The non-economic loss threshold under the Civil Liability Act 2003 (QLD) applies equally to psychological and physical injury. Psychological injury claims sometimes take longer to diagnose and stabilise, and are more frequently contested by insurers. Medical evidence from a psychiatrist or psychologist addressing the functional impact of the condition is important.
Yes. Where the insurer admits liability, or admits partial liability, they are required to fund reasonable rehabilitation expenses while the claim is being assessed. This is an obligation that arises from the admission of liability and operates separately from the final settlement. You do not have to wait for the claim to resolve before rehabilitation costs are addressed. If the insurer is disputing liability, this funding is not yet available, which is one reason why the liability question matters early in a claim.
Future income loss, or loss of earning capacity, is calculated by estimating the claimant’s likely pre-accident earnings over their remaining working life, then subtracting their estimated post-accident earning capacity over the same period. The annual difference is applied over the relevant number of years and discounted to a present lump sum value using the discount rate prescribed under the Civil Liability Act 2003 (QLD). Vocational and economic expert evidence is typically required for substantial future income loss claims. Factors including age, career history, and post-accident capacity all affect the figure.
Yes. Gratuitous care provided by family members or friends, including help with personal care, cooking, cleaning, and other domestic tasks, is compensable in Queensland CTP claims, so long as you meet the threshold of 6 hours per week for at least 6 months. The care does not need to be paid for to be claimable. The rate at which it is assessed is set under the Civil Liability Act 2003 (QLD). To support a gratuitous care claim, keep a record of who helped, what they did, and for how long. Medical evidence about the claimant’s functional limitations also supports this component.
No. CTP covers bodily injury only. Damage to your vehicle is a property damage matter handled through your comprehensive car insurer, not through the CTP system. If the other driver was at fault and they carry comprehensive car insurance, your insurer may seek to recover vehicle damage costs from their insurer. The CTP personal injury claim and any vehicle damage claim run entirely separately and through different processes.
Yes. Being partly at fault does not prevent a CTP claim. Under Queensland’s contributory negligence framework in the Civil Liability Act 2003 (QLD), fault is assessed proportionally. If you were 20% at fault and the other party was 80% at fault, your compensation is reduced by 20%. The claim is not eliminated. The insurer will raise contributory negligence as a factual and legal argument. Whether it would succeed at trial depends on the specific circumstances of the accident, not simply on what either party says about it.
Questions about what you can claim after a car accident?
Our firm practises exclusively in personal injury law across Queensland, including motor vehicle accident and CTP matters. If you would like to understand how the law applies to your injury and what compensation may be available, contact our office for further information.
