Riders who successfully fought against unfair Compulsory Third Party insurance hikes in 2013 that could have led to more than $2000 for Greenslips now face another CTP battle.
The NSW Government has proposed changing the very structure of CTP which not only affects riders, but every motorist.
The NSW Government’s proposed changes:
- Give the insurance company control over an injured person’s medical treatment. (Your doctor will no longer decide what treatment you should receive and should be paid for.);
- Limit an injured person’s rights to receive compensation for lost income if injured. (If injured people can’t go back to their jobs, they could lose everything.); and
- Significantly restrict injured people’s access to legal representation, leaving injured motorists to fight big insurance companies on their own for basic entitlements.
Motorcycle Council of NSW chairman Christopher “CJ” Burns says they plan to fight the proposed changes during Motorcycle Awareness Month.
The campaign includes a petition calling on the Premier to leave motor vehicle accident injury rights alone.
SIGN THE PETITION
Christopher sarcastically pointed out that preliminary reports leading up to the proposed changes were written or commissioned by the Motor Accidents Authority which operates the CTP scheme. (It has since been renamed the State Insurance Regulatory Authority (SIRA), but the sentiments are the same:
“NSW has set the stage for this change with a number of reports written or commissioned by the MAA to the MAA about the MAA scheme that the MAA runs and the MAA has wanted to change for five years in order for the MAA to run a new scheme,” he says.
The Government advises that the proposed changes will only affect those with minor injuries with under 11% Whole Person Impairment (WPI). However, this is nearly 90% of injured motor accident victims.
A fused ankle is only 4% WPI and this could ruin your life. A rider receiving a knee injury could have their entire future changed for the worse. All for the saving of $3 per week on a Greenslip.
Christopher agrees that there is need for change to be made to the CTP/Greenslip system in NSW. However, he says many people are not convinced that the proposed changes are the way to go.
He says the Motorcycle Council of NSW and Maurice Blackburn Lawyers support the Save Our CTP campaign and petition. It is a joint initiative of the Australian Lawyers Alliance and the Injured Persons Association.
It may only be in NSW now, but if the insurance companies win there, watch it spread to other states.