On this page you will find the answers to some of the most frequently asked questions regarding Queensland’s Compulsory Third Party (CTP) insurance scheme.
If you still can’t find what you are looking for, please Contact us.
About CTP insurance
In Queensland, Compulsory Third Party (CTP) insurance is legally required and is paid when you register your vehicle.
CTP insurance provides:
- fair compensation and access to timely medical and rehabilitation support for people injured in motor vehicle accidents
- financial protection for vehicle owners and drivers in the event they cause an accident, injuring another person
- coverage of funeral costs and compensation to dependant close relatives if a person dies in a motor vehicle accident.
CTP insurance does not cover damage to property or injuries to the at-fault driver.
For more details, visit What is CTP insurance?
There are three parties to Compulsory Third Party (CTP) insurance. The first party is the owner/driver of the vehicle ‘at fault’. The second party is the CTP insurer of the vehicle ‘at fault’. The third party is the injured person.
No. Compulsory Third Party (CTP) insurance only covers personal injury resulting from a motor vehicle accident.
Compulsory Third Party (CTP) insurance is compulsory and a condition of motor vehicle registration. If an accident occurs involving a vehicle without registration and CTP insurance, the driver and owner may be financially liable for the damages paid to the injured person. In addition, owners and drivers of unregistered vehicles face hefty fines.
Unlike many other types of insurance, Compulsory Third Party (CTP) insurance provides unlimited indemnity to the insured. Benefits paid to the injured party depend on the extent of the injuries and can include the cost of ambulance, hospital and medical treatment, rehabilitation, loss of income and long-term care. Limits may apply with respect to loss of income (the upper limit is three times the average weekly earnings per week), and limits may apply in certain circumstances regarding the payment of legal costs.
In Queensland, in most circumstances, your towing vehicle’s Compulsory Third Party (CTP) insurance covers the trailer for personal injury liability (i.e. your car’s CTP insurance will cover your trailer or caravan). However, trailers with a Gross Vehicle Mass (GVM) over 4.5 tons may need a separate, supplementary CTP policy (Class 24) or may fall under heavy vehicle CTP rules in some cases.
If you are unsure of which vehicle class to register your vehicle under, you may consider contacting the Department of Transport and Main Roads, your CTP insurer, or in some situations seeking legal advice.
For more information, see Vehicle classes.
If you are registering a vehicle for the first time, you will be required to nominate your preferred CTP insurer and pay the Compulsory Third Party (CTP) insurance premium upon registering your vehicle. For more information, see Buying CTP insurance.
To make registration costs more manageable, you may wish to explore a shorter registration period. Through the Department of Transport and Main Roads’ website, you can choose to renew your vehicle registration for a 1-month period (if enrolled in direct debit), as well as 3, 6 and 12-month registration periods.
Compulsory Third Party (CTP) insurance is linked to the vehicle, not the driver, to ensure comprehensive coverage. Linking insurance to drivers would create gaps in coverage and significantly increase costs for families sharing vehicles.
Yes, you can change your Compulsory Third Party (CTP) insurer when you renew your vehicle registration. See Changing Insurer for more information.
Use our Find a vehicle’s CTP insurer tool or check your vehicle registration documents.
You can compare insurers using our Compare pricing tool, or by contacting your preferred CTP insurer directly. For more information on factors you may wish to consider when choosing a CTP insurer, see Buying CTP insurance.
Switching insurers could save you money or provide better customer service and additional benefits. Insurers may offer discounts on other insurance products when bundled with Compulsory Third Party (CTP) insurance.
When you receive your registration renewal reminder, it is a good idea to compare insurers using our Compare pricing tool as Compulsory Third Party (CTP) insurance premiums may have changed.
QBE, Allianz and Suncorp provide CTP insurance in Queensland and individually determine their premium rates every quarter for each class of motor vehicle.
Car crash scammers (claim farmers) contact people to pressure them into making a Compulsory Third Party (CTP) insurance claim and sell their personal information to law firms. This practice is illegal in Queensland and severe penalties apply.
To learn more about how to identify, avoid and report car crash scammers, see Car crash scams (claims farming).
Can I claim?
If you or your family are injured in a motor vehicle accident in Queensland, caused by another driver (fully or partly), you may be able to make a Compulsory Third Party (CTP) insurance claim.
- CTP insurance covers treatment, rehabilitation and compensation for eligible injuries, as well as support for families who have lost a family member in a motor vehicle accident.
- Strict timeframes apply, and not all situations are covered. CTP insurance does not cover property damage or injuries where the person was entirely at fault or no one was at fault.
Each claim is assessed individually, and the amount of compensation depends on the severity of the injury and personal circumstances.
See Can I claim? for more information.
Compulsory Third Party (CTP) insurance helps people injured in motor vehicle accidents (caused wholly or partly by another driver) access insurer-funded treatment, rehabilitation and compensation.
All claims are assessed individually. The amount you may receive depends on the type and severity of your injury, and your personal situation. If you were partly responsible for the accident, the compensation you are entitled to may be reduced. Discuss any queries with the insurer or your lawyer (if you are legally represented).
You may be able to claim costs associated with:
- treatment and rehabilitation
- loss of income (past and estimated future)
- general damages (pain and suffering): payments to compensate you for things like pain, suffering, and loss of enjoyment in life. Not all injuries qualify for general damages – only those that are serious enough. See What can be claimed for information on how general damages are calculated.
- some costs related to gathering evidence for your claim (called ‘outlays’): this could include things like getting additional specialist medical reports. The costs must be considered ‘reasonable and necessary’.
- some legal fees: depending on the final settlement amount, you may be able to recover some legal fees against the insurer. Your lawyer should be able to advise on this.
For more information, see What can be claimed.
If a person dies in a motor vehicle accident in Queensland caused (wholly or partly) by another driver, the CTP insurance scheme may cover:
- reasonable funeral costs
- financial support: if you relied on the person who passed away for income, which could include claims from a surviving spouse (including de facto partners), dependent children, or other dependants.
See What can be claimed for more information.
Yes, strict timeframes apply for lodging claims. See Can I claim? for more information.
You do not need to have a lawyer acting for you; you can deal directly with the insurer about your Compulsory Third Party (CTP) insurance claim.
However, if your claim is complex or disputed, it may be in your best interests to seek legal advice. You may choose to seek legal advice at any stage of the claims process.
For more information, see About legal advice.
If you are injured in an accident that you entirely caused (you were ‘at fault’), or no one was at fault, then the Compulsory Third Party (CTP) insurer is unlikely to accept your claim to cover costs associated with your injuries.
If you were partly at fault, you can still make a claim, but the amount of compensation you receive may be reduced.
For more information, see Can I claim?
If you have a serious eligible personal injury and your motor vehicle accident occurred after 1 July 2016, you may be able to access necessary and reasonable treatment, care and support through the National Injury Insurance Scheme Queensland (NIISQ).
NIISQ is a no-fault Scheme. See the National Injury Insurance Scheme Queensland (NIISQ) website for more information.
Submitting a claim
Lodging a Compulsory Third Party (CTP) insurance Notice of Accident Claim Form, and supporting documents, notifies the CTP insurer of the at-fault vehicle that you wish to claim and provides information they need to assess your claim.
Before submitting the Notice of Accident Claim Form, you should review Can I claim? and the Pre-claim checklist to make sure you can claim, understand the timeframes you need to meet, and that you have the supporting information and documents you need.
For more information, see Submitting a claim.
The CTP insurer of the at-fault vehicle.
If the at-fault vehicle was registered in Queensland, you know the vehicle’s registration number and the date of the accident, you can use our Find a vehicle’s CTP insurer tool to look up the at-fault vehicle’s CTP insurer.
If you’re lodging your claim online through the Queensland CTP portal, you will be able to search for the vehicle’s CTP insurer while completing the online Notice of Accident Claim Form.
If the at-fault vehicle was registered in another state or territory, you will need to contact the relevant interstate authority for information on how to lodge your claim. For more information, see Interstate accidents & CTP authorities.
If you are unable to identify the CTP insurer of the at-fault vehicle, please contact us for assistance.
The Queensland CTP portal allows claimants, insurers and legal practitioners to lodge and manage Compulsory Third Party (CTP) claims online. It includes features for submitting Notice of Accident Claim Forms, rehabilitation requests and treatment plans.
For more information, or to create an account, visit the Queensland CTP portal.
For questions related to individual claims, please contact your CTP insurer.
No. The CTP insurance medical certificate must be completed by a registered medical practitioner, such as a GP or medical specialist.
For more information on the CTP insurance medical certificate, see the Pre-claim checklist.
In Queensland, as of 30 April 2022, amendments to the Oaths Act 1867 (Qld) now permit documents containing a statutory declaration to be signed with electronic signatures and witnessed via audio-visual link.
While our current forms do not contain the necessary information to accommodate electronic signing and witnessing, we encourage insurers and legal practitioners to adopt a flexible approach where required.
If you are unable to sign your form in the physical presence of a witness, please contact us, your lawyer, or the CTP insurer to discuss alternate arrangements.
If you cannot complete all questions on your Notice of Accident Claim Form, this may hold up your claim.
You should make every attempt to try and obtain the information you don’t know. If you cannot answer a question on your Notice of Accident Claim Form, advise the CTP insurer why you can’t answer that question and what you have done to try to obtain this information.
You need to complete a Claimant Certificate as part of the Notice of Accident Claim Form. The Claimant Certificate is a legal document where you confirm key details about your claim, such as whether you are making the claim voluntarily, if anyone cold called or approached you (either by telephone, mail, email or in person) and pressured you into making the claim, and/or whether you believe your lawyer has paid someone for referring your claim to them or received payment for a claim referral.
This is known as ‘car crash scamming’ or ‘claim farming’, and it is an offence for those people who have contacted you and legal practitioners to engage in claim farming in Queensland.
By signing the Claimant Certificate, you are helping MAIC detect claim farming and protect your right to make your own decisions about claiming and choosing a lawyer, without harassment or coercion.
For more information, see Pre-claim checklist.
If you have a lawyer helping with your claim, they must complete a Law Practice Certificate. If you don’t have a lawyer, you don’t need to worry about this.
This certificate shows they haven’t been involved in claim farming (scams where people are pressured into making claims). See Car crash scams (claims farming) for more information, and confirms that their fees follow the rules. If they don’t complete this, they could face penalties or lose their right to charge fees.
For more information, see Law Practice Certificates.
Claims processing and settlement
If there is a disagreement, claimants and insurers are encouraged to try to resolve the issue informally through open and respectful communication.
If the issue remains unresolved, claimants can ask for an internal review by the insurer. For more information, see Resolving claims disagreements.
Generally, claim settlements happen when:
- liability has been decided by the insurer
- your injury is stable
- the impact of your injury is known.
You can discuss settlement with the Compulsory Third Party (CTP) insurer at any stage. Either you or the insurer can make an offer of payment that would settle your claim. If you have a lawyer acting for you, they will discuss settlement with the insurer on your behalf. Most claims are settled through negotiation with the insurer and do not require further action.
When you accept a settlement offer from the insurer, this finalises your claim and you can no longer make a claim for injuries from this accident. For more information, see Claim processing and settlement.
As all Compulsory Third Party (CTP) insurance claims are assessed individually, they vary in how long they take to settle.
Claims involving minor injuries, where there are no issues about who caused the accident, usually settle more quickly than claims involving more severe injuries or uncertainty as to who caused the accident.
For more information, see Claim processing and settlement.
Claims involving children (under 18 years)
Yes. A child injured in a motor vehicle accident may be entitled to compensation under Queensland’s Compulsory Third Party (CTP) insurance scheme if another vehicle was wholly or partly at fault.
However, because a child is under 18, they cannot make or manage a claim on their own. An adult must act on the child’s behalf.
See “Who makes the claim for a child” below for further information.
A claim for a child must be made by an adult acting for the child, usually:
- a parent
- a legal guardian, or
- another responsible adult approved by the court (if required).
This adult acts in the child’s best interests and is commonly referred to as a litigation guardian.
The litigation guardian:
- completes and signs claim forms on behalf of the child
- communicates with the CTP insurer
- makes decisions about the claim, always putting the child’s interests first.
The steps for lodging a Compulsory Third Party (CTP) insurance claim for a child are broadly the same as for an adult, but differ in two main ways:
- Litigation guardian:
- since children cannot make or manage a claim themselves, a claim for a child must be made by an adult acting for the child, usually a:
- parent
- legal guardian, or
- another responsible adult approved by the court (if required).
- this adult acts in the child’s best interests and is commonly referred to as a litigation guardian
- the litigation guardian completes and signs claim forms on behalf of the child, communicates with the CTP insurer and makes decisions about the claim, always putting the child’s interests first.
- since children cannot make or manage a claim themselves, a claim for a child must be made by an adult acting for the child, usually a:
- Timeframes:
- different timeframes apply
- see Timeframes for more information.
For more information on the CTP insurance claims process see:
Different time limits apply to children.
- Notice of Accident Claim Form:
- claims should still be lodged as soon as possible. If a claim is lodged late, the insurer may ask for an explanation.
- a child’s age is often a relevant factor.
- Court proceedings:
- for children, the usual limitation period does not start until they turn 18
- this means a child generally has until their 21st birthday to start court proceedings if needed.
Even though longer time limits apply, early lodgement can help with evidence, treatment and recovery.
A child may be entitled to claim compensation for losses caused by the motor vehicle accident, including:
- medical treatment and rehabilitation costs (past and future)
- care and assistance needs (thresholds apply)
- pain, suffering and loss of enjoyment of life (general damages)
- future impacts on education, employment or earning capacity
- lost income (if applicable).
Each claim is assessed individually based on the child’s injuries and circumstances. For more information, see What can be claimed.
Yes, but extra protections apply. As children cannot legally agree to a settlement themselves:
- any final settlement of a child’s claim must be approved by a Court or the Public Trustee
- it must be satisfied the settlement is fair and in the child’s best interests
- the litigation guardian cannot finalise the claim without court approval (sanction) or sanction by the Public Trustee.
This process is designed to protect children and ensure their long-term interests are considered. For more information, see Claim processing and settlement.
For motorcycle riders
The Motor Accident Insurance Commission (MAIC) co-funds the Motorcycle Clothing Assessment Program (MotoCAP) – a free resource providing independent ratings on motorcycle protective clothing to help riders choose effective gear. Visit the MotoCAP website to learn more.
MAIC funds research and education initiatives that aim to reduce the incidence and effects of road trauma, reduce the cost of CTP insurance premiums, protect people from being injured on Queensland roads, and support their recovery if injuries do occur. Learn more about our research program.
Queenslanders pay for the National Injury Insurance Scheme, Queensland (NIISQ) via a levy paid at the time of registration, which is reviewed annually every 1 July. NIISQ funds necessary and reasonable treatment, care and support for people who have sustained an eligible serious personal injury in a motor vehicle accident in Queensland, on or after 1 July 2016.
NIISQ is a no-fault Scheme, meaning necessary and reasonable treatment, care and support can be funded regardless of who was at fault in the accident.
The NIISQ levy was increased to ensure adequate funding for lifetime treatment, care, and support for motorcycle riders who sustain serious injuries under NIISQ. For more information on this Scheme, visit the NIISQ website.
Based on claims and injury data, the levy for Class 12 was adjusted to a level similar to class 13.
This is because both single-seat and two-seat motorcycles are overrepresented as participants in the National Injury Insurance Scheme, Queensland (NIISQ).
NIISQ funds necessary and reasonable treatment, care and support for people who have sustained an eligible serious personal injury in a motor vehicle accident in Queensland, on or after 1 July 2016.
NIISQ is a no-fault Scheme, meaning necessary and reasonable treatment, care and support can be funded regardless of who was at fault in the accident.
The NIISQ levy was adjusted to ensure riders’ lifetime treatment, care and support is adequately funded. For more information on this Scheme, visit the NIISQ website.
Changing to ridesharing
To change your vehicle to class 26:
- ensure the vehicle is registered in Queensland and has a current certificate of inspection
- contact your CTP insurer and ask to move to class 26
- not sure who your CTP insurer is? Use our Find a vehicle’s CTP insurer tool by entering today’s date and your registration
- pay the difference in CTP premium to your CTP insurer
- apply for a booked hire service licence online through the Department of Transport and Main Roads website or complete a Booked Hire Service Licence Application form and pay the associated fee.
Yes. Following regulatory transport changes in 2021, you can now purchase your Class 26 certificate in advance from the licensed CTP insurer of your choice.
In response to changing market dynamics, the way CTP insurance premiums are determined for classes 3, 4 and 26 is being adjusted.
As of 1 October 2021, vehicles registered in class 3 taxi (cars and station wagons), class 4 hire vehicles and class 26 ride-booking vehicles are considered a single group and pay the same base insurer premium charged by insurers (excluding the CTP levies and administration fee).
This aims to unify CTP insurance premiums payable by personalised transport operators who deliver similar services, while ensuring that premiums still cover the cost of claims. The current vehicle classes will be retained for registration purposes; however, classes 3, 4 and 26 will be treated as a single cohort for calculating CTP insurance premiums. As a result, they will pay the same CTP insurance premium.
To learn more, view our Pricing page.