- Delivered across Sydney
- Bond and fees shown before you pay
- Never swapped to a lesser car
Almost everything that later decides a not-at-fault claim happens in the first day, and it is decided by someone who has just been hit, is running on adrenaline, and is standing next to a damaged car on a road they need to clear. This is the order of operations worth having in your head before you need it.
Car off the road today?
Tell us what you were driving and we will tell you what we run that is comparable.
First: Safety, Then Everything Else
Nothing below matters more than not being hit again. Sydney's arterial roads and motorways are
genuinely dangerous places to stand.
Move the vehicles if it is safe and lawful
If the cars are drivable and nobody is injured, get them off the running lanes. On the M4, the
Eastern Distributor or any tunnel, staying in a live lane is far more dangerous than the original
collision. Hazard lights on, and get yourself behind a barrier rather than standing between cars.
Call emergency services if anyone is hurt
If there is any injury, if a vehicle needs towing, or if anyone appears affected by drugs or
alcohol, call 000. In New South Wales the police must be notified where someone is injured or
killed, where a driver fails to exchange details, or where a driver appears impaired.
Do not leave the scene without exchanging details
Leaving without exchanging particulars is an offence, quite apart from destroying your own
claim.
Second: Get the Information You Cannot Get Later
This is the part people rush and regret. Ten minutes here saves months.
From the other driver
Full name, address, phone number. Licence number. Registration number. Insurer and policy
number if they have it. Photograph their licence and registration papers rather than writing
details down, because handwriting errors on a rego number are common and expensive.
Confirm who owns the other car
The driver is not always the owner, particularly with company vehicles and borrowed cars. Ask
directly, because it affects who the claim runs against.
Witnesses
Independent witnesses are the single most valuable thing you can collect and the hardest to
find afterwards. If someone stops, get a name and a mobile number before they leave. Nobody comes
back later.
Photographs
Both vehicles from several angles including undamaged sides. The damage close up. Both
registration plates. The position of the vehicles before anything is moved, if it was safe to
photograph them there. The wider scene showing lanes, signals, signage and skid marks. The
weather and light conditions. Any relevant road markings.
Dashcam
If you have one, secure the file that day. Many units overwrite on a loop within hours and the
single best piece of evidence in the case can be gone by the following morning.
Third: What Not to Do
Do not apologise or accept blame
Australians apologise reflexively and it is a genuine problem at accident scenes. Liability is
determined on the evidence, not on what you said while shaken. Be civil, exchange details, do not
characterise fault either way.
Do not agree to settle privately on the spot
Cash offers to keep it off insurance are common and frequently regretted. Damage is routinely
worse than it looks, particularly on modern vehicles where sensors and alignment sit behind a
bumper that appears barely marked.
Do not throw away the damaged parts
If anything comes off the vehicle, keep it. It is evidence about impact and speed.
Do not authorise repairs before assessment
Starting work before the insurer has assessed the vehicle can complicate the claim
substantially. Get it assessed first.
Fourth: Reporting
Police
Where police attendance is required, report it. Otherwise you can generally report online
through the NSW Police Community Portal, which produces an event number. That number is useful
even when police do not attend, because it fixes the date and the account in an independent
record.
Your own insurer
Notify them promptly even if you do not intend to claim on your own policy. Most policies
require notification of any incident regardless, and failing to notify can create problems later
that have nothing to do with fault.
The at-fault driver's insurer
Your property damage and replacement vehicle claim runs against them. Where liability is
straightforward, contacting them directly is often the fastest route.
Fifth: The Vehicle and the Replacement
If it was towed
Find out exactly where it went. Holding yards charge daily storage, and a car quietly
accumulating storage fees while everyone waits for an assessor is a bad and avoidable outcome.
Push for assessment promptly.
If it is drivable
It still needs assessing before repair. Ask the insurer how to arrange that and note the date
you asked.
Arranging a replacement
You are generally entitled to the reasonable cost of a broadly comparable or equivalent vehicle
for the period you are deprived of your own, following the High Court's 2021 decision in
Arsalan v Rixon; Nguyen v Cassim. That is a genuine entitlement rather than a favour, and
it does not require you to prove you needed a car.
What you should decide deliberately rather than in a hurry is how the hire is funded. Paying
yourself and claiming it back is cleaner where you can afford it. Credit hire solves the cash flow
but you need to read the clause about what happens if the claim fails.
Sixth: Start the File
Open a folder that day, physical or digital, and put everything in it. The photographs. The
other driver's details. The police event number. The tow company and holding yard. Your report to
your own insurer with the date. Every piece of correspondence after that.
Disputes about a not-at-fault claim are almost always decided on documents, and the person with
a complete file from day one is in a materially better position than the person reconstructing a
timeline from memory three months later. This is the single highest-value thing you can do and it
takes almost no effort at the time.
Sydney-Specific Things Worth Knowing
Tunnels and motorways change the rules
In the Harbour Tunnel, the Cross City Tunnel, the M5 East or the Eastern Distributor, stopping
is dangerous and the operator will be watching on camera. Follow the incident response
instructions, get to an emergency bay or breakdown lane if you possibly can, and expect the
operator to attend quickly. Do not stand in a live lane taking photographs in a tunnel under any
circumstances.
Toll roads and where the car ends up
A vehicle recovered from a motorway is often taken to the operator's nominated holding yard
rather than anywhere convenient. Find out where before you leave the scene, because tracking it
down afterwards wastes days and storage charges accrue while you do.
Peak-hour clearance pressure
On arterial roads at peak, there is real pressure to clear quickly and people frequently drive
off having exchanged almost nothing. If you are being hurried, the minimum is a photograph of the
other licence and registration plate. Everything else can be reconstructed. Those two cannot.
Reporting online
Where police do not attend, the NSW Police Community Portal lets you lodge a report and get an
event number. It is worth doing even for a straightforward exchange, because it puts an
independent date and account on the record before anyone's memory improves.
When to Get Advice Rather Than Push On
Some situations are worth a solicitor early rather than after things have gone wrong. If anyone
was injured. If liability is disputed or the other driver's account differs from yours. If the
other driver was uninsured or unlicensed. If the vehicle is a likely write-off and valuable. If
you are being pressed to sign a credit hire agreement you have not read properly.
If the replacement vehicle is booked
We never move you down a tier. If your dates are taken, these are the luxury cars we will offer instead, and we will tell you plainly if none of them is free rather than substituting something lesser on the day.
Range Rover Sport
- 294kW
- 5.9s
- AWD
- 5 seats
The kind of broadly comparable replacement the principle contemplates when the damaged car was a prestige SUV.
Mercedes-Benz GLS
- 243kW
- 6.3s
- AWD
- 7 seats
Seven seats, for when the car off the road was the family vehicle and a hatchback genuinely will not do the job.
Need something tomorrow morning?
Say so when you enquire. Short-notice replacements are common after an accident and we would rather plan for it than improvise.
General information only. Every claim turns on its own facts.
Frequently Asked Questions
What details do I need from the other driver?
Full name, address and phone number, licence number, registration, and their insurer and policy number if available. Photograph the licence and registration papers rather than writing details down, because errors in a transcribed rego number are common and costly.
Do I have to call the police in NSW?
Police must be notified where someone is injured or killed, where a driver fails to exchange details, or where a driver appears impaired. Otherwise you can generally report online through the NSW Police Community Portal, which gives you an event number worth having.
Should I say sorry at the scene?
Be civil, but avoid characterising fault either way. Liability is determined on evidence, not on what you said while shaken. Exchange details and leave the assessment to the process.
Someone offered me cash to keep it off insurance. Should I take it?
It is frequently regretted. Damage on modern vehicles is routinely worse than it appears because sensors, alignment and structural components sit behind a bumper that looks barely marked. Once you have accepted and parted ways, your position is much weaker.
How important is a dashcam file?
Often decisive, and often lost. Many units overwrite on a loop within hours, so secure the file the same day rather than assuming it will still be there tomorrow.
Do I have to tell my own insurer if I am not claiming on my policy?
Generally yes. Most policies require notification of any incident regardless of whether you claim. Failing to notify can create problems later that have nothing to do with who was at fault.
When can I arrange a replacement vehicle?
You can arrange one straight away. The entitlement is to the reasonable cost of a broadly comparable vehicle for the period you are deprived of your own. Decide deliberately how it is funded rather than signing the first agreement put in front of you.
What if my car was towed?
Find out exactly where it went and press for assessment promptly. Holding yards charge daily storage and a vehicle can accumulate significant fees while everyone waits for an assessor.
When should I speak to a solicitor?
If anyone was injured, if liability is disputed, if the other driver was uninsured or unlicensed, if the car is a likely write-off and valuable, or if you are being pressed to sign a credit hire agreement you have not read properly.
Is this legal advice?
No. This is general information about how replacement vehicle claims usually work in New South Wales. It does not take account of your circumstances and no solicitor-client relationship arises from reading it. For advice on your own claim, speak to a solicitor.
Does Drive Tribe run my claim?
No. We are a vehicle hire business. What we can do is supply a broadly equivalent replacement from a prestige fleet, and tell you honestly whether what we have is a reasonable match for what you were driving.