Compulsory Third Party (CTP) insurance is a mandatory insurance policy built into the registration of every motor vehicle in Queensland.
CTP covers the cost of personal injuries that are caused by the vehicle in question during a road accident. If you are injured in a car crash, the at-fault vehicle's CTP policy will pay for your medical treatment, all lost income and any other losses.
The scheme is governed by the Motor Accident Insurance Act 1994 (Qld).
Understanding CTP Insurance
CTP insurance is provided because motor vehicle accidents can cause serious injuries that are often time-consuming and expensive to treat and recover from. Without compulsory insurance, those injured in car crashes would have to sue individual drivers who might not have the money to pay. The CTP scheme ensures there is always an insurer behind the at-fault vehicle to support the injured party.
How CTP is paid for
CTP insurance is paid for every time you register or renew a vehicle in Queensland. CTP premiums are built into the registration fee, and you don’t receive a separate CTP policy document. Queensland has the lowest Class 1 CTP premiums (cars and station wagons) of any mainland state.
Since new legislation came into effect on 1 October 2025, the three licensed insurers have been able to set different prices for CTP. This means you can compare premiums using the MAIC CTP Premium Calculator and choose the insurer with the lowest premium for your class of vehicle.
Who are the CTP insurers in Queensland?
There are three licensed insurers currently providing CTP insurance in Queensland:
- Suncorp (underwritten by AAI Limited), which holds the largest market share
- Allianz
- QBE
RACQ stopped working with the Queensland CTP scheme on 1 October 2023, because of unsustainable finances. RACQ held around a quarter of all CTP, and those policies were redistributed equally among the three remaining insurers. RACQ still manages the claims from policies it sold before that date.
Who regulates the scheme?
The Motor Accident Insurance Commission (MAIC) is responsible for overseeing the CTP scheme. MAIC licenses insurers, sets premium guidelines, publishes claim forms and manages the Nominal Defendant, which takes care of claims when an at-fault vehicle is unidentified or uninsured.
How CTP Insurance Differs from Comprehensive Car Insurance
This is a common point of confusion for Queensland drivers. CTP and comprehensive insurance are entirely different products which cover different things.
A simple way of looking at it is that CTP covers people, not property. If you cause an accident and damage another car, but no one is hurt in the process, CTP won’t apply. If someone does suffer an injury, CTP covers their injury costs.
What CTP Insurance Pays For
If you are injured in a motor vehicle accident that was the other driver’s fault, you can claim for several things from the at-fault vehicle's CTP insurer:
- Medical and hospital expenses which aren’t not covered by Medicare, including surgery, rehabilitation, physiotherapy, psychology and medication
- Lost income from time off work during your recovery, as well as future earning capacity if your injuries affect your ability to work long term
- General damages, which is the legal term for compensation for pain, suffering and reduced quality of life stemming from injuries suffered in a car accident. Not all claims are severe enough to qualify for general damages
- Attendant care and support services, including the value of unpaid care provided by family members who help you with daily tasks, transport to appointments and personal care
- Future treatment and care costs based on your projected long-term needs
- Out-of-pocket expenses such as travel to medical appointments and any equipment you need during recovery.
What CTP does not cover:
- Damage to any vehicle involved in the accident
- Property damage (fences, buildings, other people's belongings, etc.)
- Your own injuries, if you were solely at fault (with one exception: see NIISQ below)
The CTP Claim Process: An Overview
The claims process is defined under the Motor Accident Insurance Act 1994 (Qld) and follows a structured timeline.
- Consult a doctor and ask them to complete a CTP medical certificate.
- Report the accident to police and get a QP (Queensland Police) reference number.
- Identify the at-fault vehicle's CTP insurer using the registration number and the MAIC CTP Insurer Search tool.
- Complete and lodge a Notice of Accident Claim (NOAC) form with the insurer. You can do this online through the CTP claims portal or by submitting a PDF form. You must lodge this form within 9 months of the accident, unless you have already consulted a solicitor, in which case the deadline goes down to 1 month from that consultation.
- The insurer should respond within 14 days to confirm whether you made your claim correctly.
- The insurer will make a liability decision within 6 months about whether they accept full fault, partial fault or deny liability.
- Rehabilitation and treatment may be funded by the insurer during this period, even before they formally admit liability.
- Settlement or court proceedings will follow once your injuries have stabilised (typically 9 to 12 months). A compulsory conference (a mandatory pre-court settlement meeting) must take place before the matter can go to court.
The time limit for starting court proceedings is 3 years from the date of the accident, as per the Limitation of Actions Act 1974 (Qld).
The Nominal Defendant: Hit-and-Runs and Unregistered Vehicles
If the vehicle which causes your accident cannot be identified (such as in a hit-and-run), or was not registered (and therefore had no CTP insurance), you can still make a claim. These claims are made against the Nominal Defendant, which is managed by MAIC.
The process is largely the same as a standard CTP claim, but with stricter deadlines:
- Unidentified vehicle (hit-and-run): claims must be lodged within 3 months of the accident unless you have a reasonable excuse for the delay, in which case you can lodge up to 9 months after the accident. After 9 months, the claim is permanently barred with no extensions.
- Unregistered vehicle: the standard 9-month deadline applies if the vehicle is identified but unregistered.
You must be able to prove that you made all reasonable efforts to identify the at-fault vehicle, such as contacting witnesses, checking for CCTV footage and getting a police report.
NIISQ: Cover for Catastrophic Injuries
The National Injury Insurance Scheme Queensland (NIISQ) is a separate no-fault scheme which provides lifetime treatment, care and support to people who suffer catastrophic injuries in motor vehicle accidents, regardless of who was at fault.
NIISQ is funded through a levy included in your CTP premium, and covers injuries such as serious spinal cord injury, traumatic brain injury, amputations, severe burns and permanent blindness. You do not need to prove fault in order to receive NIISQ support.
If you become an NIISQ participant, you can still make a separate CTP claim for compensation if you were not at fault because the two schemes work alongside each other.
Fault Disputes and Shared Fault
For a CTP claim to be successful, the injured person must prove that another driver was at fault. The fault is shared between two or more parties in many accidents.
What happens when fault is disputed?
In cases such as these, the insurer will investigate the accident and make a decision on liability within 6 months of receiving your claim. They may accept full or partial liability, or even completely deny liability. If you disagree with what they decide, you can dispute it through legal proceedings.
What if you were partly at fault?
In Queensland, there are rules regarding contributory negligence. If you were partly responsible for an accident, your compensation will be reduced by the percentage of fault attributed to you. For example, if you were 30% at fault, you receive 70% of the assessed compensation.
Being partly at fault does not prevent you from making a claim.
Common Scenarios and Questions
I was a passenger in the car, can I claim CTP?
Yes. Passengers are almost always entitled to make a CTP claim because they were not the cause of the accident. Claims are made against the CTP insurer of the vehicle whose driver was at fault. If both drivers share fault, you can claim against either or both.
The other driver's car was not registered, does that mean I cannot claim?
You can still claim in this case. If the at-fault vehicle was unregistered, you will claim against the Nominal Defendant, which is managed by MAIC. The same types of compensation are available, but there are stricter time limits for unidentified vehicles.
Does CTP cover me if I was riding a bicycle or walking?
Yes. Pedestrians and cyclists injured by a motor vehicle can make a CTP claim against the at-fault vehicle's insurer. You do not need to have been in a vehicle yourself to get compensation.
I was at fault and seriously injured, will I have any coverage?
In cases involving catastrophic injuries, yes. NIISQ provides no-fault cover for eligible serious injuries regardless of who was at fault for the accident. In cases involving non-catastrophic injuries where you were solely at fault, CTP will not provide cover.
What is the difference between CTP and third party property insurance?
Third party property insurance covers any damage you cause to other people's vehicles and property, but it does not cover injuries. CTP only covers personal injuries. They are separate products with different purposes, although you can hold both.
When to Get Legal Advice
It’s always a good idea to seek legal advice at the earliest opportunity, especially if:
- Your injuries are more than minor soft tissue (fractures, head injuries, spinal injuries, psychological injuries, etc.)
- You have lost income or may not be able to return to your previous work
- The insurer denies liability or disputes the level of fault
- You receive a settlement offer and are unsure whether it is fair
- Your claim involves an unidentified or uninsured vehicle (Nominal Defendant claim)
- You are approaching the 9-month deadline and have not yet filed a claim
Why legal representation matters: CTP insurers are fully aware that unrepresented claimants cannot realistically take them to court if their offer is too low. When a solicitor is involved, the insurer knows the matter can proceed to court if they do not negotiate in good faith.
Most claims are settled before reaching court, but they settle at higher amounts because of this dynamic. MAIC data from 2024-25 shows that claimants with legal representation receive higher average payouts compared to those who represent themselves.
Key Takeaways
- CTP insurance is compulsory and built into your vehicle registration. Every registered vehicle in Queensland has it, and it covers personal injuries caused by that vehicle, not property damage.
- Three insurers currently operate in Queensland: Suncorp, Allianz and QBE. You can compare premiums and choose the best insurer for your vehicle.
- You have 9 months to lodge your claim form (NOAC) and 3 years to start court proceedings. For hit-and-run claims against the Nominal Defendant, the lodgement deadline is just 3 months.
- NIISQ provides separate no-fault cover for catastrophic injuries, regardless of who caused the accident. It works alongside the CTP scheme, it doesn’t replace it.
- Legal representation makes a measurable difference to outcomes. MAIC data shows represented claimants receive higher average payouts than unrepresented claimants.
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