Vehicle insurance

CTP insurance is paid at the same time as motor vehicle registration. Just as registration of your vehicle is compulsory, so is CTP insurance.

Your CTP insurance premium provides cover under a compulsory Policy of Insurance. The Policy of Insurance protects you (and other people who use your registered and insured vehicle, with or without your consent) against the financial impact of causing injury or death to other road users through the use of your vehicle anywhere in Australia.

You have the freedom to choose one of the CTP Insurers that best meets your personal needs, each time your registration renewal is due.

Each insurer’s policy coverage is the same. To help you make your choice, your renewal notice or mySAGOV account shows a comparison of each insurer’s premium prices and a claimant service rating, which shows how injured people who have made a claim rated the insurer’s service.

To change your nominated CTP insurer, you can Nominate a future CTP insurer online. You will need your licence/client number and your plate number

Use the Compulsory third party (CTP) insurer search to identify the CTP insurer of a vehicle at the date of an accident.

For more information about CTP insurance, what it covers and what it does not cover, visit the CTP Regulator website.

Premiums and premium classes

Visit the CTP Regulator website for information on premium classes for different types of vehicles and to find out how premiums are set, and use the CTP premium calculator to  calculate the premium for your vehicle.

You may need to change your premium class if you change your residential address, garaging address or use of the vehicle.

Phone 13 10 84 or visit a Service SA centre to find out if the changes affect your premium.

How to make a claim

To lodge a CTP claim, you will need to lodge an injury claim form with the at-fault-vehicle's CTP Insurer.

Lodging a claim - CTP Insurance Regulator

Contact the Regulator by phoning 1300 303 558 or emailing ctp@sa.gov.au

Reporting a false claim

False motor injury claims are a cost to all South Australian vehicle owners every year.

Fraud - CTP Insurance Regulator

Third party property insurance may cover damage caused by you to another person's property, but not your car. It is relatively inexpensive and can be arranged with an insurance company of your choice. If your vehicle is not covered, you may have to pay the repair costs for the other person's vehicle if you are responsible for a crash.

Comprehensive insurance may cover damage to your car, other cars, property or for theft. If you have taken out a loan to buy a car, you may be required to purchase this type of insurance.

If you decide to buy private vehicle insurance, shop around and find the deal that best suits your needs. Make sure you know exactly what you are covered for, what your obligations are and how to make a claim.

Driving without registration and CTP insurance

You may drive a vehicle on South Australian roads without registration and CTP insurance only in the following situations:

• using a vehicle to fight a fire that threatens life or property, in which case the vehicle may be driven to and from the fire by the shortest route
• using a self-propelled wheelchair or other motor vehicle of a prescribed class (not a motor car) by a person who requires it because of a physical infirmity
• driving a motor vehicle onto a wharf for loading or unloading cargo
• moving a self-propelled lawn mower to or from a place where it is used to mow
• driving a motor vehicle with trade plates, providing it is being used in accordance with conditions applying to trade plates
• towing a motor vehicle (other than a trailer) by a tow truck.

In order to gain exemption in these situations, the owner or driver of the vehicle (except a wheelchair) must have a public liability insurance policy that indemnifies the owner or driver for losses up to five million dollars in damage to property or death or injury arising out of the vehicle's use on the road.

Driving without CTP insurance

You may drive the following vehicles on South Australian roads without CTP insurance:

• a tractor or agricultural machine that is conditionally registered and is being used to pull agricultural implements, prescribed agricultural machinery and trailers
• a registered motor vehicle owned by a primary producer that is being used to pull an unregistered agricultural implement or agricultural machine
• an unregistered prescribed agricultural machine being driven to:
  • move it across a carriageway by the shortest route
  • move it from a point of unloading to a work site by the shortest route
  • enable it to perform a special function on a carriageway that it is designed to perform.