How Queensland values an injury
There is no single payout figure for an injury. In Queensland the amount depends first on which scheme applies, because each sets its own rules for what can be claimed and how pain and suffering is scored.
Road accidents
General damages are fixed by the Injury Scale Value (ISV): each injury is scored 0 to 100 against the Civil Liability Regulation table and converted to a dollar figure, with no threshold but tightly prescribed amounts. Economic loss and care are assessed separately.
Work injuries
No-fault statutory benefits: weekly payments, medical and rehabilitation expenses, and a lump sum for permanent impairment once the injury is stable, set out in a Notice of Assessment. A common law claim against a negligent employer has no impairment threshold in Queensland, but you must receive a Notice of Assessment first and then choose between the lump sum offer and suing. The limit is 3 years from injury or 6 months after the Notice of Assessment, whichever is later.
Public liability and medical negligence
Before any court action you must serve a Part 1 Notice of Claim on the person you say is responsible within 9 months of the injury or 1 month of first instructing a lawyer. General damages use the ISV scale. The general limitation period is 3 years.
The parts of a payout
- General damages for pain, suffering and loss of enjoyment of life. This is what the calculator above estimates, and it is the part most affected by state thresholds and scales.
- Past and future economic loss: lost wages so far, reduced earning capacity for the rest of your working life, and lost superannuation. For serious injuries this is usually the largest component and can run to seven figures.
- Treatment, care and equipment: past and future medical costs, rehabilitation, aids, home and vehicle modifications, and the value of care from family.
What moves the number
Your age and occupation, because future income loss is calculated to retirement. Whether the injury is permanent and how it scores under the state’s impairment or injury scale. Any contribution you made to the accident, which reduces damages proportionally. And the quality of the medical evidence: a claim settles on what can be proved, not what happened.
Time limits
Obtain a police report, then serve a Notice of Accident Claim on the CTP insurer within 9 months of the crash or 1 month after first seeing a lawyer, whichever is earlier (3 months for a Nominal Defendant claim). Court proceedings must start within 3 years. Most claims settle at a compulsory conference before court. Work injury claims have their own lodgement step: See a doctor for a Work Capacity Certificate and lodge the statutory claim with WorkCover within 6 months of the injury. Decisions can be reviewed, but review deadlines are short and strictly enforced.