A person on foot has no metal around them, so injuries from being struck by a vehicle are often severe: fractures, head injuries, and long recoveries. The compensation path is the same CTP scheme that covers everyone else injured by a driver's negligence in Queensland, and the pedestrian needs no insurance of their own.

Key points

  • A pedestrian injured by a driver's negligence claims against the vehicle's CTP insurer.
  • Crossing away from a marked crossing does not defeat a claim; it may reduce it by a percentage if it contributed.
  • Unidentified or unregistered vehicles are covered through the Nominal Defendant, with a three-month notice requirement.

Drivers' duties to pedestrians

Drivers must give way to pedestrians at marked crossings and when turning at intersections, and must at all times keep a proper lookout and drive at a speed that lets them stop for what is reasonably foreseeable, including a person crossing the road. In car parks, school zones and shopping precincts the standard of care is higher because pedestrians are expected. A driver who is speeding, distracted or fails to see a person in plain view is negligent, and the CTP insurer of that vehicle is who the claim is made against.

Crossing mid-block or against the lights

Pedestrians also have obligations under the road rules, and an insurer will look at where you crossed, whether the signals were against you, and visibility. If your own conduct contributed, the claim is reduced by a percentage under the contributory negligence provisions of the Civil Liability Act. It is not removed. Even a pedestrian who crossed against a red signal can recover a proportion where the driver had time to see and avoid them. If you had been drinking and it contributed, the Act presumes contributory negligence at a minimum of 25%.

Children and elderly pedestrians

The standard expected of a child is the standard of a reasonable child of that age, not an adult, so reductions for a young child's contributory negligence are uncommon. Drivers near schools, parks and residential streets are expected to anticipate children. For older pedestrians, injuries such as hip fractures often have lasting consequences, and the claim for care and loss of independence needs to be documented properly from the start.

Hit-and-run

If the driver leaves and cannot be identified after proper inquiry, the claim is against the Nominal Defendant. Notice must be given within three months of the accident, and no claim can be made after nine months. Report to police immediately, ask nearby businesses for CCTV, and see a lawyer without delay. If the vehicle was identified but unregistered, the Nominal Defendant also responds, on the ordinary nine-month timeline.

What the claim covers

Hospital and rehabilitation costs, income loss past and future, superannuation, domestic care above the statutory threshold, aids and home modifications, and general damages under the injury scale values. Catastrophic injuries are covered for life by NIISQ regardless of fault. Rehabilitation can be funded by the insurer while the claim is being decided.

Frequently asked questions

Can a pedestrian claim if they were jaywalking? Usually yes. Crossing away from a crossing may reduce the claim by a percentage if it contributed, but a driver still has to keep a proper lookout.

Who pays if the driver was uninsured? Every registered Queensland vehicle carries CTP. If the vehicle was unregistered or cannot be identified, the Nominal Defendant pays.

How long do I have? Nine months to lodge the claim form, or one month after first seeing a lawyer; three months for an unidentified vehicle; three years to start court proceedings.

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