New South Wales Consolidated Acts

MOTOR ACCIDENTS COMPENSATION ACT 1999 - SECT 82

82 Duty of insurer to make offer of settlement

(1) It is the duty of an insurer to make a reasonable offer of settlement to the claimant (unless the insurer wholly denies liability for the claim)--

(a) within 1 month after the injury is sufficiently recovered to enable the claim to be quantified, or

(b) within 2 months after the claimant has provided to the insurer all relevant particulars about the claim as required by section 85A,

whichever is the later.

(2) An offer of settlement is to specify an amount of damages or a manner of determining an amount of damages.

(3) If an offer of settlement is made on the basis that the insurer admits only part of the liability for the claim, the offer is to include details sufficient to ascertain the extent to which liability is admitted.

(4) This section does not apply to--

(a) a claim made in respect of the death of a person, or

(b) a claim in respect of an injury that is not sufficiently recovered within 3 years after the motor accident to enable the claim to be quantified, or

(c) a claim in respect of which a medical assessor has declined to make an assessment under Part 3.4 of the degree of permanent impairment of the injured person because the impairment caused by the injury has not become permanent.

(6) The insurer is not entitled to delay the making of an offer of settlement under this section on the ground that any particulars about the claim are insufficient unless the insurer requested further relevant particulars within 2 weeks after the claimant provided particulars.

Note : Section 96 provides that a dispute about whether particulars about a claim are sufficient may be referred to the Commission.

(7) It is a condition of an insurer's licence under Part 7.1 that the insurer must comply with this section.

Note : Section 91 provides that 2 months after the insurer makes an offer of settlement the claim, if not resolved, may be referred for assessment. If an offer is not duly made, the claim may be referred for assessment as soon as the time for making the offer has expired.