The 5 things you must do if you’re in a car accident
While you may be safe on the road, car accidents are an all too common part of life for many motorists. Organising police reports, insurance claims, and getting compensation for any injuries are by no means simple tasks – they can be expensive, stressful and time consuming.
Greg Masselos, principal lawyer at Masselos & Co in Sydney, says that motor accident compensation law is a complex and highly specialised area of law. “To make sure you get the best possible outcome for your case, you need to consult an expert personal injury lawyer, preferably a specialist accredited by the NSW Law Society, ” he advises.
Here Mr Masselos shares his top five tips around the things you must do if you ever find yourself in a car accident.
1. Report the accident to police
If either party in the accident is injured, it’s your legal duty to notify the police. The best way to do this is to pop into a nearby police station to report the incident or call the Police Assistance Line (131 444). When you do this you will be given a COPS Event Number as confirmation that the accident was reported, so make sure you write this down and keep it somewhere safe.
2. Submit an Accident Notification Form
If you were injured in the accident you may be entitled to compensation, irrespective of which party was at fault. You have 28 days to submit an Accident Notification Form which may entitle you to claim up to $5,000 to cover treatment expenses and economic losses incurred in the six months after the accident. You will need a Medical Certificate completed by your doctor.
3. Consult your doctor
Even if you’ve been lucky enough to escape with minor injuries, it’s still important to report all your symptoms to a doctor. Not only does this ensure your treatment progresses without unnecessary delays, as Mr Masselos notes, “It will also avoid disputes with the insurance company should an injury that you considered minor at the time of the accident become more of a problem as time goes by. A good paper trail in your doctor’s records can save a lot of arguments down the track.”
4. Lodge a Personal Injury Claim Form
If you’ve sustained an injury in an accident that wasn’t your fault, you’re required to lodge a Personal Injury Claim Form within six months of the accident with the compulsory third party (CTP) insurer of the vehicle at fault. For accidents with multiple vehicles where responsibility may be a bit more contentious, forms may have to be submitted to the CTP insurers of each car. Forms are required to be submitted with Medical Certificates and as Mr Masselos notes, “The claim form is a lengthy document and you should consider obtaining legal advice before you lodge it.”
Late claims with satisfactory explanations can be considered, but these applications are often considerably more difficult and time consuming. It does seem like a lot of work during what is often a period of great stress, but Mr Masselos advises that it is worth the extra effort to cover yourself: “Lodging a Personal Injury Claim Form and Medical Certificate within six months of the accident does not oblige you to proceed with your claim, however it protects your ability to claim damages in the future, and for that reason it is prudent to lodge the form in most, if not all, circumstances. It also ensures that your treatment expenses will be paid up front by the insurer.”
5. Find out if you have other rights to compensation
Lodging a motor accident compensation claim does not stop you from claiming additional benefits from other insurers. An example of this would be claiming workers compensation benefits for a car accident that occurred in the course of your work, or benefits claimed under a private insurance policy. While this doesn’t stop you from lodging a claim, in certain circumstances money paid under those policies will need to be refunded should you recover damages from the CTP insurer.
As Mr Masselos explains: “Medicare and private health insurers will usually pay for treatment expenses following a motor vehicle accident, but they will usually be entitled to recover those benefits when you ultimately receive your damages.”
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