Motor Vehicle
Time Crisis – How long have I got to make a personal injury claim in Queensland
If you’ve been injured in a car accident in Queensland, then you’re probably asking yourself “how long have I got to make a personal injury claim?”
Whether you’re exploring motor vehicle accident claims or just need advice, a personal injury lawyer in Queensland can walk you through the time limits that apply.
Important Things to Remember
First, there are two important things to remember:
- For minors, the timeframes do not commence until they are 18; and
- Lodging your claim as early as possible will assist in early access to treatment and rehabilitation.
If you can identify the vehicle and its registration is current, then there are three time periods to keep in mind:
- From date of the car accident to 9 months post-car accident – injured people have 9 months from the date of their car accident to serve a compliant Notice of Claim on the relevant CTP insurer.
- From 9 months post-car accident to 3 years post-car accident – If an injured person wants to make a personal injury claim in relation to a motor vehicle accident that happened longer than 9 months ago, but less than 3 years ago, then their Notice of Claim needs to have a “Reasonable Excuse for Delay”. In our experience, CTP insurers are generally pretty happy to accept reasons for delay, providing they are reasonable (e.g. “I thought my injuries would settle, but they got worse over time” or “I didn’t know I could make a personal injury claim and spoke to lawyers when I found out”).
- After 3 years from date of car accident – claimants attempting to bring a claim after 3 years are prohibited from doing so. The legislation that prevents this is called The Limitations of Actions Act, and it sets out a strict 3-year time period in which injured people must “commence proceedings” in relation to their claims. It is very important for injured people to understand that “serving a Notice of Claim” is NOT the same as “commencing proceedings”. Commencing proceedings requires the filing of formal court documents in the relevant court jurisdiction. Because commencing proceedings is a very technical and significant step, we recommend that injured people seek legal advice well in advance of the 3 year limitation date expiring.
If you cannot identify the vehicle or it is an unregistered vehicle, then there are another three time periods to keep in mind:
- From date of the car accident to 3 months post-car accident – injured people have 3 months from the date of their car accident to serve a compliant Notice of Claim on Nominal Defendant (the CTP insurer of unregistered and/or unidentified vehicles).
- From 3 months post-car accident to 9 months post-car accident – If an injured person wants to make a personal injury claim in relation to a motor vehicle accident that happened longer than 9 months ago, but less than 3 years ago, then their Notice of Claim needs to have a “Reasonable Excuse for Delay”. The Nominal Defendant will generally accept the same types of reasons that you can give CTP insurers (listed in Paragraph 2 above).
- After 9 months from date of car accident – claimants attempting to bring a claim against unregistered or unidentified vehicles after 9 months are prohibited from doing so. Queensland’s law is very strict on this time limit, so any person injured in a car accident involving an unregistered or unidentified vehicle needs to ensure that they serve a compliant Notice of Accident Claim form well before this date.
Car Accident Claims
At Claimwise our mission is to help you save money on legal fees.
We’ve put together a guide on personal injury lawyer costs in Queensland so you know exactly what to expect — because starting your motor vehicle accident claims with a traditional ‘No Win, No Fee’ law firm can leave you $10,000 or more out of pocket compared to using us.
If you or someone you know have been injured in rear-end car accidents or any other road incident in Queensland and want to keep your legal costs down, feel free to get in touch.
Be smart, claim wise.