What happens if I don't know the details of the car that hit me?

If you can't identify the driver that hit you, or if that vehicle isn't registered, you can still make your claim. But, there are some extra steps that you need to take sooner rather than later:

Most of the time, when you have an injury on the road in Queensland, you can make a claim against the CTP insurer for the at fault driver (which is automatically paid through your registration).

However, if the vehicle that caused your accident is either unregistered or unidentified (i.e. you don't know the details for the vehicle), you can make your claim against the Nominal Defendant instead. The Nominal Defendant is a statutory body, that is funded through our CTP insurance premiums. They will step in as the insurer, and you will be entitled to the same compensation that you would have received otherwise.

But - there are a few differences.

Your Notice of Accident Claim form must be given to the Nominal Defendant within three (3) months of your accident. Outside of this, you must provide the Nominal Defendant with a reasonable excuse for the delay.

If your Claim form is not given to the Nominal Defendant within nine (9) months after your accident, your claim is statute barred. This means that you cannot make your claim or be compensated for your injuries. So, it is very important that you lodge your claim as soon as possible.

The other difference is that you need to make attempts to try and identify the at fault vehicle.

This might include making reasonable enquiries at the time of the accident (if possible), trying to locate witnesses, going back to the scene of the accident, requesting CCTV footage, or posting on social media. The Nominal Defendant will ask you to demonstrate that you've made every attempt to find the at-fault vehicle.

So, yes - you can still make your claim, but you need to act quickly.

Please reach out to Allison and Rachel so that we can help you to comply with these extra steps.