Lodge a claim for compensation

If you have sustained an injury, loss or damage that you believe was due to Council's negligence, you can lodge a claim for compensation.

For Council to be held liable for injury or property damage, the evidence must show that:

  • Council owed a duty of care
  • Council breached that duty of care
  • the breach of duty of care resulted in injury, loss or damage.

Follow the steps below to lodge your claim for compensation.

Key information

Please do not submit a claim for compensation if:

How to lodge a claim

Prepare your documents

In the application, you will be asked to provide the following:

  • Colour photos of the incident site marked with an 'X' to show the specific cause of your injury, loss or damage. We need to see the exact location and evidence of the condition of the site at the time of the incident.
  • Details of the specific relief you are seeking from Council, including total compensation. Attach supporting documents to your claim, such as receipts, invoices and quotes.
  • Written copies of the expert opinions or reports proving that Council is mainly responsible for the injury, loss or damage.
  • Permission to act on behalf of another person, such as Authority to Act(PDF, 154KB), if the claim relates to that person suffering an injury, loss or damage.
  • Permission to act on behalf of the Owners' Corporation if the claim relates to common property on a strata title, such as paths, fences and driveways.

Lodge claim

We will contact you with a response to your claim after we complete our investigations.

Lodge claim

Your claim is investigated

We have an obligation to ensure the ethical use of Council funds including ratepayer contributions. As such, Council must investigate all claims before it accepts any liability. 

Council is not liable for acts of nature beyond our reasonable control, such as high winds, hail, storm events and tree branch failure.

Please be advised that we may refer your claim to a trusted third party to look into your matter further. Their role is to consider claims made against Council for alleged negligence. Assessments of this type can often be complex and fall outside of the core business of councils.

Receive response

You will receive a formal outcome by email once Council’s investigations are complete.

Can I engage a lawyer to represent me?

You may choose to seek independent legal advice at any time, at your own expense. If you do, please ensure your legal representative notifies Council of their involvement.