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Southern Highlands

Car accident doctor for the Southern Highlands: CTP injury care

From Bowral to Robertson, our doctors assess people hurt in Southern Highlands crashes, by telehealth or in person, and complete the Certificate of Fitness.

Book an appointment(02) 7238 7379

Last updated , 9 min read

An open two-lane country road curving through dry grass and gum trees in regional NSW

You can start CTP care after a Wingecarribee Shire crash without a long drive, because a first consultation with our doctors can usually happen by telehealth. That suits a shire of scattered towns and villages, from Hill Top to Wingello. A knee or shoulder hurt in a motorbike fall on the Old Hume may need a face-to-face examination, which we arrange. Either way, our doctor records your injuries, completes the Certificate of Fitness and maps out care, perhaps with our physios or a psychologist. The CTP insurer generally pays for treatment that is reasonable and necessary for your accident injuries; it decides what's approved, and its decisions can be reviewed.

Between the towns, the Southern Highlands are farms, bush and the catchment that supplies Sydney's water. Bowral, Moss Vale and Mittagong are the largest centres, with villages such as Colo Vale, Exeter and Burradoo around them. Outside the towns, most trips mean a car journey, and that's hard with a sore neck or back, so telehealth lets you begin care from home. Freight drivers on the Hume, commuters and visitors all use these roads. The injuries we see range from whiplash after a low-speed bump in town to fractures after a higher-speed crash on the highway.

On this page8 sections

Local road safety

Where people are hurt on the roads in the Southern Highlands

Transport for NSW crash data, 2020 to 2024, shows about three in ten of the shire's injury crashes happening in 50 km/h zones, the speed of town streets. Even so, the Hume Highway records more than any other single road, ahead of the Illawarra Highway and the Old Hume Highway. Sutton Forest and Yerrinbool sit high on the list of localities beside Bowral, Mittagong and Moss Vale. Riders feature in about one in seven injury crashes, and trucks or other heavy vehicles in roughly one in ten. Each of those tends to bring a different pattern of injury from a slow-speed bump in town. Pedestrians and cyclists appear far less often in the figures.

Crashes where someone was hurt in the Southern Highlands, 2020 to 2024
YearCrashes where someone was hurtKilledSeriously injuredAll casualtiesAll recorded crashes (including tow-away crashes)
202099131132145
202188132112124
20221011241145148
2023102635134156
202497132114138
2020 to 202448721171637711
Crashes where someone was hurt are police-reported crashes in which at least one person was killed or injured. All casualties counts everyone killed, seriously injured, moderately injured or with minor or other injuries. The last column, for context, also counts crashes where no one was hurt but a vehicle was towed away. Injury severities are as recorded in this police-reported dataset; Transport for NSW's hospital-linked serious injury statistics are a different, higher series.

Roads and streets with the most crashes where someone was hurt

  1. 1.Hume Highway104 crashes
  2. 2.Illawarra Highway58 crashes
  3. 3.Old Hume Highway46 crashes
  4. 4.Moss Vale Road17 crashes
  5. 5.Nowra Road11 crashes

Localities where people were hurt most often

Localities as recorded by Transport for NSW. A crash near the council boundary can carry the name of a locality next door.

  1. 1.Bowral63 crashes
  2. 2.Mittagong60 crashes
  3. 3.Moss Vale51 crashes
  4. 4.Sutton Forest41 crashes
  5. 5.Robertson26 crashes

Road-user mix. Of the 487 crashes where someone was hurt in 2020 to 2024, 15% involved a motorcycle, 5% a pedestrian, 3% a bicycle and 10% a heavy vehicle (a crash can involve more than one). Crashes in speed zones of 90 km/h or more made up 32% of the total.

Main roads through the Southern Highlands

  • Hume Highway (M31)
  • Illawarra Highway
  • Old Hume Highway
  • Moss Vale Road
  • Nowra Road
  • Kangaloon Road
  • Wombeyan Caves Road

Source: Transport for NSW, NSW Road Crash Data 2020 to 2024 (open data). Casualty crashes by LGA of crash. View the dataset (opens in a new tab)

First steps

After a crash in the Southern Highlands: getting checked and recorded

Two cars after a minor collision

Call triple zero first if anyone is badly hurt, and on the Hume or the Illawarra Highway keep well back from passing traffic. Note the other car's registration and the driver's details. Where police weren't at the scene, let them know about the crash afterwards. Then see a doctor soon, even if you feel fine on the day. Neck pain, headaches and stiffness often show up later, and an early record links them to the crash. Your claim is handled by the CTP insurer that covers whichever vehicle was at fault.

  1. Get safe, then get help

    Call 000 if anyone is seriously hurt or in danger. For police attendance when it isn't an emergency, the Police Assistance Line is 131 444.

  2. Report it and keep the event number

    Report the crash to police if anyone was hurt, a driver left the scene or a car was towed. Keep the event number: the claim form asks for it.

  3. Swap details and take photos

    Get names, phone numbers, licence details and registration plates from every driver, and witnesses' details before they leave. Photograph the scene when it's safe.

  4. See a doctor early

    Ideally within a day or two, even if you feel fine. Pain often builds over the following days. An early appointment records your injuries and starts your Certificate of Fitness.

  5. Which CTP insurer handles your claim

    You claim with the CTP (green slip) insurer of the vehicle most at fault, worked out from its registration. If that vehicle can't be identified, the claim may go to the Nominal Defendant.

  6. Lodge the claim form

    The form is the Application for Personal Injury Benefits, backed by your Certificate of Fitness. Our step-by-step lodging guide walks through it.

Time limits

A claim served within 28 days of the accident can have benefits backdated to the accident date. A common reference point for lodging is three months from the accident. Your circumstances can change the dates, so confirm yours with SIRA or a solicitor.

CTP injury care

Car accident injury care for the Southern Highlands: your first appointment

A doctor with a tablet talking with a patient seated on an examination bench

An early assessment gives the insurer a clear medical record that links your injuries to the crash, and that record shapes the treatment it considers. Whether you were nudged at a Bowral roundabout or hurt at speed on the Hume near Sutton Forest, the first visit covers what happened, an examination, the Certificate of Fitness, a written care plan and the notes the insurer will later want. Telehealth means someone in Wingello, Berrima or Penrose can begin without a long drive, and we arrange in-person care when an examination needs to be hands-on. The shire's crash data points to the injuries we expect: whiplash and back strain from rear-end crashes on town streets, and fractures and shoulder or knee injuries for the motorcyclists who appear often in the figures. Worry about driving can follow a high-speed crash on the Hume too, and our psychologists take it seriously.

Our CTP doctors see people injured in motor vehicle accidents across NSW. The first appointment does four jobs, and each one feeds the claim:

  1. A proper assessment

    The doctor takes a history of the crash, examines you and records a diagnosis for each injured area, including the ones that seem minor today.

  2. Your Certificate of Fitness

    The main medical document in a NSW CTP claim. It records your injuries, your capacity for work and what you can and can't do. The first one must come from a medical practitioner, and each one generally covers up to 28 days, so it's renewed as you recover. See what a Certificate of Fitness should include.

  3. A treatment plan

    What you need next, such as physiotherapy, psychology or exercise physiology, with clear reasons the insurer can act on.

  4. The records the insurer asks for

    Dated notes, referrals and reports that link your symptoms to the crash. Insurer decisions lean on them, so they need to be specific.

More detail: the CTP medical assessment, and physiotherapy, psychology and exercise physiology under CTP.

CTP injury care

Common injuries after crashes in the Southern Highlands

Every crash is different, but some injuries come up again and again after car crashes. Many don't show their full extent on the day:

Our guide to car accident injuries and their symptoms covers the warning signs.

The road-user mix above shows who else gets hurt on the roads in the Southern Highlands. Each of these groups has its own injury pattern:

Motorcycles

Riders have little protection, so fractures and wrist, knee and ankle injuries are more common. See motorcycle accidents in NSW.

Heavy vehicles

Crashes with trucks involve more force, so injuries tend to be more serious, and the shock can linger. See psychological injury.

Pedestrians

A person struck by a vehicle can have leg, pelvic and head injuries, often more than one at once. See pedestrian hit by a car.

Bicycles

Cyclists often land on a shoulder, wrist or hip. See shoulder injuries and cyclist hit by a car.

A man taking a phone consultation at home, sitting by a sunlit window

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CTP benefits

What CTP pays for, and weekly payments

Approved treatment is generally arranged through the CTP scheme rather than paid by you directly. Depending on your injuries, it can include:

  • Appointments with our CTP doctors, and specialist care where it's needed.
  • Physiotherapy, psychology and exercise physiology with our allied health team.
  • X-rays, scans and other imaging when they're clinically justified.
  • Medication prescribed for your accident injuries.
  • Reasonable travel to approved treatment, where the insurer agrees. Check its process first.

If your injuries stop you working, or cut your hours, weekly payments may be paid where the scheme rules allow. The amount is based on your pre-accident earnings, it steps down at set points, and there's a cap. Your Certificate of Fitness records your capacity for work, so keep it current. Being mostly at fault, or having an injury classified as minor, shortens how long some benefits run. See CTP weekly payments, minor vs non-minor injury and CTP benefits in NSW.

Booking

Telehealth or in person: how to book

A woman at home on a video consultation, a clinician visible on her laptop screen

Telehealth makes it simpler to see a CTP doctor from the Southern Highlands without a long drive while you're sore. Where an in-person examination is needed, we'll talk through the options when you book.

  1. Book online or call

    Use the booking form or call (02) 7238 7379.

  2. We confirm by phone

    We call to confirm the time, whether it's telehealth or in person, and what to bring.

  3. Bring what you have

    Photo ID, the police event number, a claim number if you already have one, any scans or hospital letters, and a list of your medications.

New to telehealth? Here's what to expect from a telehealth CTP appointment.

Around the area

Suburbs and towns across the Southern Highlands

These are some of the suburbs and towns in the Southern Highlands. We see people from all of them. Where we have a local page, the name is linked.

  • Bowral
  • Mittagong
  • Moss Vale
  • Bundanoon
  • Hill Top
  • Robertson
  • Colo Vale
  • Burradoo
  • Berrima
  • Exeter
  • Yerrinbool
  • Welby
  • New Berrima
  • Balmoral Village
  • Burrawang
  • Sutton Forest
  • Wingello
  • Penrose
  • Fitzroy Falls
  • Kangaloon
  • Avoca
  • Braemar
  • Medway
  • Aylmerton

Neighbouring council areas: Wollondilly, Wollongong, Shellharbour, Kiama, Shoalhaven, Goulburn Mulwaree, Upper Lachlan.

Frequently asked questions

Sources

About the area

Last checked:

General information, not legal advice. CTP Doctor is a medical clinic, not a law firm or an insurer, and this page isn't medical advice for your situation. For the scheme rules, see SIRA.

A doctor talking through next steps with an older patient at her desk

Next step

See a CTP doctor after a crash in the Southern Highlands

Often seen within the week. Telehealth across NSW, or in person where appropriate. No claim number needed to start.

Book an appointment(02) 7238 7379
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