---
title: "Prepare an NSW common-law damages application for the insurer"
url: "https://ailawframework.com/practice/personal-injury-and-compensation/prepare-the-application-that-opens-a-motor-accident-damages-claim/new-south-wales"
type: "task_jurisdiction_version"
site: "AI Law Framework"
id: "A21-MV20261023-8-NSW"
practice_area: "Personal Injury & Compensation (workers compensation, CTP/TAC, medical negligence)"
tier: "yellow"
lawyer_review: "required"
jurisdictions: ["NSW"]
last_reviewed: "2026-10-25"
---

# Prepare an NSW common-law damages application for the insurer

> Draft only the form fields the lawyer has marked that are not a narrative of the accident, pain or work. Leave blank the declaration and the signature the page says the claimant must sign.

Canonical page: https://ailawframework.com/practice/personal-injury-and-compensation/prepare-the-application-that-opens-a-motor-accident-damages-claim/new-south-wales  
Last reviewed: 2026-10-25

Site index for agents: https://ailawframework.com/llms.txt

## Key facts

| Fact | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Practice area | [Personal Injury & Compensation (workers compensation, CTP/TAC, medical negligence)](https://ailawframework.com/practice/personal-injury-and-compensation.md) |
| Human involvement | Yellow: Lawyer and AI draft together |
| How AI is used | Draft only the form fields the lawyer has marked that are not a narrative of the accident, pain or work. Leave blank the declaration and the signature the page says the claimant must sign. |
| What the lawyer must review | Decide whether a damages application is available and settle every factual section. Leave the declaration and the signature blank. The claimant must sign them. Do not decide more than minor injuries, or not wholly at fault. The page uses both phrases. Keep medical details in the firm's system. Apply ASCR rule 9, APP 11, and the Privacy Act notifiable-breach test. |
| Written for | New South Wales |
| Applies to | [Prepare the application that opens a motor-accident damages claim](https://ailawframework.com/practice/personal-injury-and-compensation/prepare-the-application-that-opens-a-motor-accident-damages-claim.md) |

## Checking plan

**Verify against sources**

The lawyer decides whether a damages application is available. The tool leaves the signature blank and writes no narrative.

- What the AI does: Draft only the form fields the lawyer has marked that are not a narrative of the accident, pain or work. Leave blank the declaration and the signature the page says the claimant must sign.
- What the lawyer does: Decide whether damages are available. Settle every factual section. The claimant signs.
- Who reviews: Lawyer competent in this practice area
- Basis: Checked against the linked sources on 23 October 2026. Confirm the current instrument before reliance.

## Checks the lawyer makes

1. The page limits a damages claim to a person with more than minor injuries, who was not wholly at fault, where the accident was caused by the fault of the owner or driver in the use or operation of a motor vehicle. Do not decide fault. Do not rename the page's phrase "minor injuries".
2. The claim must be made within three years of the accident, or with a full and satisfactory explanation if it is later. That claim time is section 6.14. Do not say an explanation is full and satisfactory.
3. The page lists economic loss, and non-economic loss only if permanent impairment is greater than 10 per cent. It says past and future medical costs cannot be claimed as damages. Section 4.5, which the page links for the full list, was not opened.
4. The application is the common-law damages form sent to the insurer, and a personal injury benefits form if that claim has not been made. The claimant must sign the declaration and authority. The tool leaves that signature blank and writes no narrative. The form itself was not opened.

## Notes

- The same page describes weekly payments of two, three or five years and does not restate the 52-week gate in section 3.11. Weekly payments are taken from sections 3.11 and 3.12, not from this page alone. No law-practice certificate is mentioned on the page, so none is completed.

## Practical guide

Jurisdiction: Common-law damages claim to the insurer under the Motor Accident Injuries Act 2017 (NSW)

**Deliverable**: Marked fields of the damages application, with the signature and any narrative left blank.

**Inputs**

- Accident date
- Fields the lawyer has marked
- Whether a personal injury benefits claim is already on the file

**Example**: Illustrative example: The lawyer marks the accident date and the insurer. The tool copies those fields and leaves the signature, and any account of the accident, blank.

**Stop and escalate when**

- The tool is asked to sign, or to write the declaration or a narrative of the accident, pain or work.
- The tool is asked to decide fault, or that impairment is greater than 10 per cent.

Checked 2026-10-23.

## Sources

- [SIRA: apply for common law damages](https://www.sira.nsw.gov.au/resources-library/motor-crash-compensation/guides-and-resources/apply-for-common-law-damages-lump-sum-compensation) (checked 2026-10-23)
- [Motor Accident Injuries Act 2017 (NSW) section 6.14](https://classic.austlii.edu.au/au/legis/nsw/consol_act/maia2017245/s6.14.html) (checked 2026-10-23)

*Practice guidance for planning and review. Confirm current primary sources and the requirements of the actual matter. This is general information, not legal advice.*