Every NSW driver has paid for CTP. Very few actually know what it does. The green slip you buy at registration time is one of the most misunderstood products in Australian insurance — and that's a problem, because it's the thing that pays for you and your passengers if the crash leaves anyone injured.
This article explains how CTP actually works in NSW under the Motor Accident Injuries Act 2017 (MAIA 2017). No jargon. No marketing. Just what covers what, who can claim, and where the 28-day deadline sits.
What CTP actually is
CTP stands for Compulsory Third Party. In NSW, every registered vehicle must carry a CTP policy — you can't renew rego without one. The policy sits with one of a handful of licensed NSW CTP insurers (Allianz, QBE, NRMA, AAMI, GIO, Youi), and you picked one when you paid for the green slip.
CTP does not cover the car. Let that land for a second — most people think it does, and most people are wrong. CTP covers injury to people, not damage to vehicles. Damage to cars is covered by comprehensive insurance (if you bought it) or by the at-fault driver's property damage cover — a separate policy entirely.
Who is covered under CTP
Under the MAIA 2017, NSW CTP covers injury to:
- The driver of any vehicle involved.
- Passengers in any vehicle involved.
- Motorcyclists and their pillion passengers.
- Cyclists injured by a motor vehicle.
- Pedestrians struck by a motor vehicle.
- Rideshare drivers and rideshare passengers (Uber, DiDi, Ola — the rideshare driver's CTP is the vehicle's green slip, same as any car).
The entitlement follows the vehicle, not the person. If you're injured in your mate's car, it's your mate's CTP policy that covers you — not your own. If you're hit by another car while crossing the street, it's the other car's CTP policy that covers you — even though you don't own a car.
The two halves of a NSW CTP claim
Under MAIA 2017, a CTP injury claim splits into two very different halves.
Half one: statutory benefits
Statutory benefits are the defined, no-fault-required part of the scheme. If you're injured in a NSW motor accident, you're entitled to statutory benefits regardless of who caused the crash — including if you caused it. This is the part most people don't know about.
Statutory benefits cover three things:
- Weekly income support — up to 95% of your pre-accident earnings for the first 13 weeks (capped at a weekly maximum set by SIRA), then up to 80% from weeks 14–52. Capped at 52 weeks in total for most claimants.
- Treatment and care — GP visits, physio, psychology, imaging, specialists, medications — all paid direct by the insurer to the provider, not via reimbursement.
- Domestic assistance and attendant care — if your injury stops you doing basic tasks at home, paid care can be approved.
Half two: damages (common-law claim)
Damages is the traditional lump-sum side of the claim. You can pursue damages if you're not wholly or mostly at fault (i.e. less than 61% at fault) and, for most claims, your injury is classed as non-threshold — meaning something more serious than minor soft-tissue or minor psychological injury. (More on threshold in our threshold injury article.)
Damages can cover pain and suffering, future economic loss (wages you'd otherwise have earned), and future care. It's typically settled once your injury has stabilised, often 18–36 months post-accident. Damages settlements are one-off payments, not ongoing — statutory benefits stop at 52 weeks; damages sit separately as a lump sum where you're eligible.
The 28-day rule — the deadline you can't miss
Under MAIA 2017, a CTP claim should be lodged within 28 days of the accident to preserve the full backdated entitlement to weekly payments. Lodge inside 28 days and weekly income support is payable from the date of the accident. Lodge late, and the insurer can reasonably argue that the weeks between the accident and lodgement aren't payable.
How a CTP claim is lodged
The formal mechanism is a CTP Personal Injury Claim Form, lodged with the insurer of the at-fault vehicle (or, if you can't identify the at-fault driver, with the Nominal Defendant Scheme run by SIRA). The form asks about the accident, the injury, pre-accident earnings, and treatment so far.
The insurer then has statutory timeframes under MAIA 2017 to accept or deny the claim. If accepted, weekly payments and treatment approvals start flowing. If denied, the claim can be reviewed internally and then externally through the Personal Injury Commission.
Fault and CTP — what actually matters
Fault is the part of CTP that trips people up most. Here's the plain version:
- Statutory benefits are largely not-fault. You get them whether you caused the crash or someone else did. There are some exclusions (drink driving, driving unlicensed in some scenarios) but for the great majority of crashes, fault doesn't gate statutory benefits.
- Damages are fault-sensitive. You can pursue damages only where you're less than 61% at fault. If you're over 61% at fault, damages are blocked; statutory benefits still run.
- The other driver's fault is worked out from the evidence. Police report, dashcam, photos, witness statements. It's a negotiation with the insurer, sometimes reviewed through the Personal Injury Commission.
Threshold vs non-threshold — the other lever
Beyond fault, the MAIA 2017 uses a threshold test for damages. Minor injuries — minor whiplash, minor soft-tissue, minor psychological injury — are classed as threshold injuries. Threshold injuries get full statutory benefits for up to 52 weeks but are generally excluded from a damages lump sum. Non-threshold injuries — anything more serious, including most fractures, surgeries, and permanent impairments — can pursue damages where fault is on the other side.
The threshold decision is made by the insurer early in the claim and can be reviewed through the Personal Injury Commission if you disagree. Getting the threshold classification right matters — it's the single biggest determinant of whether damages sit on the table.
What CTP doesn't cover
To keep expectations clean, here's the list of things CTP does not pay for:
- Damage to your car (that's comprehensive or third-party property).
- Damage to other people's cars (that's third-party property).
- A hire or replacement vehicle while yours is off the road (that's not-at-fault car hire, run separately).
- Tow and storage costs (usually paid through comprehensive or the at-fault party).
- Property damage to fences, poles, buildings.
How Accident Hub handles CTP
We lodge your CTP claim inside the 28-day window, we chase the insurer for approvals, we fight threshold misclassifications, and where damages are on the table we run them to settlement. What we don't do is ask you to learn the scheme while you're in pain. That's our job.
The only thing you need to know is which of the four customer types you are after a NSW crash — not injured / injured, at fault / not at fault. We've built Accident Hub to handle all four. Unlike most compensation law firms, that includes drivers who caused the crash themselves — because the 52 weeks of statutory benefits are yours, and someone needs to lodge them for you.
Had a car accident? Call Accident Hub.
We explain the scheme in your language, lodge your CTP claim on time, and run the whole thing — car, medical, claim — until it's sorted. One call. One brand.