Hearing loss resulting from acoustic trauma in a motor accident may be recognised under NSW Compulsory Third Party (CTP) insurance, but the claim process involves specific legal and practical considerations. This article explains how hearing loss due to crash forces or airbag deployment is assessed under the Motor Accident Injuries Act 2017, and how caregiver and family factors may influence the outcome of a CTP claim. The focus is on the practical impact on claimants and their support networks, including how family involvement affects medical assessment, impairment evaluation and claim management.
The Motor Accident Injuries Act 2017 (MAIA) governs CTP claims in NSW. Under this law, hearing loss caused by acoustic trauma, such as from sudden loud noise during a crash or airbag deployment, may be considered a physical injury eligible for compensation. The assessment of such injury depends on clinical evidence of permanent hearing impairment, as determined by a medical practitioner using the Whole Person Impairment (WPI) assessment process. The Motor Accident Injuries Regulation 2017 and the Motor Accident Guidelines set out the criteria for evaluating sensory impairments, including hearing loss, and require objective audiometric testing to establish the degree of impairment.
Caregivers and family members play a critical role in supporting a claimant through the CTP process. Their involvement may affect the claim in several ways. First, family members often provide essential evidence about the impact of the injury on daily life, including changes in communication, social participation and emotional wellbeing. This information is particularly relevant when assessing the effect of hearing loss on a claimant’s capacity for work, household duties and personal relationships.
Second, if a claimant requires assistance with managing medical appointments, communicating with insurers, or completing claim forms, a caregiver may be formally recognised as a support person. While the CTP scheme does not provide direct payments to caregivers, the claimant’s ability to manage their affairs is considered when assessing entitlement to treatment and care benefits, weekly income payments and damages. In cases where the claimant has significant functional limitations due to hearing loss, including difficulty understanding speech or responding to environmental sounds, the family’s role in daily support may be noted in the medical report and referenced in the claim assessment.
Third, family members may be asked to provide witness statements about the accident, including details of the noise level, suddenness of the event, and any immediate symptoms such as tinnitus, dizziness or ear pain. These accounts help establish the nature of the acoustic trauma and may support a claim that the injury was caused by the motor accident rather than pre-existing conditions.
Practical steps that often matter include:
- Seeking medical assessment from an audiologist or specialist ear, nose and throat (ENT) doctor as soon as possible after the accident.
- Preserving records of any hearing changes, including notes on difficulty understanding conversations, increased effort in listening, or tinnitus.
- Taking photographs of the vehicle, airbag deployment area, or any visible damage that may relate to the noise source.
- Gathering contact details of witnesses, including other passengers or people near the scene.
- Keeping a diary of how the hearing loss affects daily activities, such as using the phone, attending meetings, or watching television.
Time limits apply. A claim for motor accident injury must generally be made within three years of the accident date. For claims involving permanent impairment, the claim must be made within three years of the date the claimant first knew, or ought to have known, that the injury was caused by the accident. Failure to meet this deadline may prevent a claim from proceeding.
If a claim is disputed, the claimant may request a review by the insurer or apply to the Civil and Administrative Tribunal (NCAT) for a determination. Disputes may arise over the extent of the hearing loss, whether it was caused by the accident, or the level of impairment assigned. In such cases, the claimant may be required to undergo an independent medical examination (IME), and family members may be asked to provide further information about the claimant’s functional limitations.
A hypothetical example: A 42-year-old mother was involved in a head-on collision. The airbag deployed with a loud explosive sound. She developed persistent tinnitus and a 40 decibel hearing loss in her left ear. Her husband, who was a passenger, reported that she did not respond to verbal cues immediately after the crash and later struggled to hear in noisy environments. He assisted her in arranging medical appointments and documented her difficulty understanding family conversations. This evidence, combined with audiometric testing showing permanent sensorineural hearing loss, supported a WPI assessment of 5%. The family’s consistent account of functional impact was considered in the claim assessment.
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