Statutory benefits vs damages — the difference
A NSW CTP claim has two parts. Statutory benefits are the weekly income and treatment funding while you recover — they start early and, for the first 52 weeks, largely don't depend on fault. Damages are different: a single lump sum at the end of the claim, for the lasting effect of a serious injury. See statutory benefits explained for the first half.
This page is about the damages claim — the part most people mean when they ask "how much will I get?"
When the damages claim is open
Two conditions generally have to be met for a damages claim:
- Your injury is non-threshold. More than a minor soft-tissue or minor psychological injury. A disc or nerve injury, a fracture, a significant psychological condition — these typically qualify. See threshold vs non-threshold injury.
- The crash was wholly or partly someone else's fault. If another driver caused it, the damages claim is open. If you were entirely at fault, it generally isn't — though your statutory benefits still are.
Meet both and the lump-sum claim is available. Miss either and you're in statutory-benefits-only territory — which is still a real claim, just without the end payout.
What the damages claim covers
A damages claim is built from up to four components, depending on your injury and circumstances:
1. Past economic loss
Income you actually lost from the crash up to settlement, over and above what the statutory benefits paid — the gap between your full earnings and what you received.
2. Future economic loss
Often the largest component. If the injury permanently reduces your earning capacity — you can't do heavy work, can't return to your trade, have to drop hours or change roles — this compensates the future income impact. It's built from your earnings history and a forecast of what you can realistically earn now.
3. Future medical and care
The forecast cost of ongoing treatment and care — future physio, future surgery (for example hardware removal or a joint replacement down the track), ongoing medication, and any care or domestic help you'll need. Built from treating-specialist opinions.
4. Non-economic loss (pain and suffering)
Compensation for the pain, suffering and loss of enjoyment of life caused by the injury. This component is only available where your whole-person impairment is assessed above 10%, using the legislative criteria. Not every non-threshold injury reaches that mark.
When you can make it — and why timing matters
A damages claim is usually made once your injury has stabilised, so the long-term picture is clear. There's generally a window before which a damages claim is expected to be made — around 20 months from the crash, with exceptions for cases still settling.
The risk of settling too early is real: future economic loss and future care are the big-ticket items, and you can only value them once you know how the injury has actually settled. An early offer made before recovery is stable can leave a lot of money on the table. We don't settle a damages claim until the future picture is properly understood.
How the amount is worked out
There's no fixed table that spits out a number. Each component is built from evidence — earnings records, treating-specialist reports, the whole-person impairment assessment. That's why we don't quote dollar figures up front: an honest answer depends on your injury, your work, and the medical evidence. See how much compensation NSW for the honest version of that question.
No contingency cut
Legal costs on a damages claim are regulated and capped under MAIA 2017, and are typically paid by the insurer. We don't take a percentage out of your settlement. That's a core difference between Accident Hub and a traditional law firm that takes a contingency cut — your damages stay yours.
What we do for you
We run the whole claim. Statutory benefits keep you supported through recovery while we build the damages case — gathering the earnings evidence, working with treating specialists on future needs, and arguing the impairment assessment properly. Then we negotiate the settlement at the right time, without taking a cut.
Take the short check at /check, or call (02) 7238 7379 and a real person picks up.