Not at fault in Liverpool and South West Sydney
If you were hit and it was not your fault, you are entitled to be put back where you were before the crash, and that includes a replacement car while yours is repaired. The process in Liverpool, Moorebank, Prestons and the wider south west is the same as anywhere in NSW: the at-fault driver's insurer covers your reasonable loss of use, not your own insurer.
What changes out here is the traffic. The M5, the Hume Highway and Newbridge Road produce a particular kind of crash, often at speed, often involving a work vehicle, often with a tow truck on scene before you have finished swapping details. This guide walks through what to do at the scene, how towing works, how a replacement car reaches you, and what the other side must pay for.
Key takeaways
- The not-at-fault process in Liverpool and South West Sydney is the same as anywhere in NSW: the at-fault driver's insurer covers your reasonable loss of use.
- You choose your own repairer, not the tow truck driver and not the insurer, and for a prestige car that choice matters.
- Towing and storage from the M5 are recoverable, but only if you keep the docket and move the car promptly.
- Prestige repairs in the south west commonly run two to four weeks for cosmetic work and much longer for structural damage.
- If the other driver is uninsured or unidentified, report to police within 24 hours and expect a different recovery path.
- The South West's crash hotspots: M5, Hume Highway and Newbridge Road
- What to do at the scene on an industrial road
- Towing from the M5 motorway
- Choosing a repairer in Liverpool, Moorebank or Prestons
- How a replacement car reaches you in South West Sydney
- What the at-fault insurer must cover
- How long repairs take for prestige cars in the south west
- What to do if the other driver is uninsured
- Business fleets and work vehicles in the south west
The South West's crash hotspots: M5, Hume Highway and Newbridge Road
South West Sydney crashes cluster in a handful of places, and knowing them helps you anticipate what the insurer will ask about.
The M5 between the M7 interchange and Moorebank Avenue is the busiest stretch. The eastbound approach to the Moorebank Avenue exit stacks up from about 6:30am, and rear-end collisions are common when traffic compresses suddenly. Westbound, the climb past River Road toward the M7 is where faster traffic meets slower trucks.
The Hume Highway through Liverpool and Casula carries heavy freight. Crashes here tend to be higher speed and often involve more than two vehicles, which makes fault harder to pin down. Newbridge Road between Liverpool and Chipping Norton is a different problem: industrial driveways, turning trucks and cyclists, with crashes at lower speeds but more disputed versions of events.
Then there is the local grid. Orange Grove Road, Hoxton Park Road, Cowpasture Road and the Cumberland Highway all see regular not-at-fault collisions, usually at intersections where a light has just changed.
What matters is not the location but the evidence. In every one of these spots, the insurer will want to know who had the right of way, what the lights showed, and whether anyone was on a phone. That is the same test whether you crashed in Liverpool or Lane Cove.
What to do at the scene on an industrial road
Industrial roads around Moorebank, Prestons and Wetherill Park add a few wrinkles that residential streets do not.
First, get out of the traffic lane. On roads like Moorebank Avenue or the industrial stretches of Newbridge Road, trucks cannot stop quickly and a person standing beside a car is in real danger. Move to the verge, behind a barrier, or into a driveway apron.
Second, photograph the scene before anything moves if it is safe to do so. Get the position of both vehicles, the lane markings, any give-way or stop sign, and the street name. Then photograph the other driver's licence, registration papers and insurer details.
Third, collect witnesses. Industrial areas have plenty of people around: forklift drivers, delivery drivers, workers on smoko. Ask for a name and number. A witness who saw the other car run a red on Hoxton Park Road is worth more than any argument you can have later.
Fourth, do not admit fault, even politely. "Sorry mate" at the scene has sunk more claims than bad driving. Stick to exchanging details and let the insurers work it out.
If anyone is injured, call 000. If the road is blocked, call the police. Otherwise, you can report the crash online through the NSW Police website within 24 hours if a vehicle was towed or someone was hurt.
Age limits are set per car. Drivers under 25 can hire most cars with Young Driver Cover; the exact terms are shown before you pay.
Towing from the M5 motorway
The M5 is a controlled-access motorway, and that changes how a tow works.
If your car is driveable, get it to the emergency lane or, better, off at the next exit. Do not stand behind the car on the motorway shoulder. If it is not driveable, stay in the car with your belt on if you can, and call for help.
Tow trucks patrol the M5 and often arrive before police. You are not obliged to use the first truck that turns up. You can call your own tow, and if you have a replacement car arranged, tell the tow operator where the car is going. A repairer in Liverpool, Moorebank or Prestons is the natural destination if you are heading that way.
Two things to watch. First, some tow operators will push you toward a particular repairer, sometimes one a long way from home. You choose the repairer, not the tow driver. Second, get the tow docket and keep it. The at-fault insurer should cover reasonable towing and storage as part of your loss, but only if it is documented.
If the car is towed to a holding yard, storage fees can build quickly. Move it to your chosen repairer as soon as you can, and keep every receipt. If you are unsure whether storage is recoverable, read our guide on what the at-fault insurer must cover.
Not at fault? Start your claim
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Start my claimChoosing a repairer in Liverpool, Moorebank or Prestons
You are not required to use the repairer the at-fault insurer suggests. In NSW you can choose your own, and for a prestige or performance car you should.
The reason is simple. A mainstream insurer's preferred shop may be excellent at volume work on family cars, but your car may need specific tooling, specific paint matching, or a manufacturer-approved repair method. Ask three questions before you commit:
- Do you have the equipment and training for this model?
- Will you use genuine or manufacturer-approved parts?
- How long is your current queue?
Around Liverpool there are established repairers along the Orange Grove Road and Hoxton Park Road corridors, and more in the Moorebank industrial estate and Prestons. Many are within easy reach of the M5 and M7, which matters if the car has to be moved again.
If your car is under manufacturer warranty, check whether the repairer is approved for that brand. A repair done outside the network can complicate a future warranty claim on related components.
Get the repairer to give you a written estimate and a realistic completion date. That date is what the at-fault insurer will use when assessing how long your replacement car is needed. If the repairer says six weeks, the insurer cannot reasonably argue you only needed a car for two.
For more on what like-for-like actually means when your car is in the shop, see like-for-like replacement.
How a replacement car reaches you in South West Sydney
Most replacement cars are delivered, not collected. In the south west that usually means a driver meeting you at home, at work, or at the repairer.
Common delivery points are Liverpool CBD, Moorebank, Prestons, Casula, Glenfield, Ingleburn and Campbelltown. If you work in the industrial estates around Wetherill Park or Eastern Creek, delivery there is straightforward. If your car is at a repairer near the M5, the replacement can often be handed over in the same visit.
Timing matters. If you call before midday on a weekday, same-day or next-day delivery is often possible, depending on what is available. Weekends and public holidays are tighter. Tell the operator your work hours and where the car will sit overnight, because a prestige vehicle parked on the street in some areas is not ideal.
You will need your licence, and you will sign a hire agreement. The rate, the bond and any fees are shown on the car's page before you pay. The bond equals the excess you choose, and paying by card carries a small surcharge while bank transfer and cash on the rental do not. Bookings are fulfilled by Drive Tribe (drivetribe.com.au), the trading name of Australian Business Holdings Pty Ltd, and this site is part of that group.
If you want to see what is available, start here: not at fault accident replacement.
What the at-fault insurer must cover
The at-fault driver's insurer is responsible for your reasonable losses, and that includes a replacement car while yours is off the road.
The legal foundation in NSW is the High Court decision in Arsalan v Rixon, which confirmed that loss of use is a real, recoverable loss even if you did not hire a car yourself. You can read the plain-English version at Arsalan v Rixon explained.
What the insurer must cover:
- Reasonable hire of a comparable car for the period your car is genuinely off the road
- Reasonable towing and storage
- Repair costs, or the market value if the car is a write-off
What it will push back on:
- Hire that runs longer than the repair reasonably takes
- A replacement car far above your own car's standard
- Rates above the market for the class of car
That last point is why the "reasonable hire car test" matters. A prestige car owner can hire a prestige replacement, but the rate still has to be defensible. Our page on the reasonable hire car test goes through how that is assessed.
If the other driver is uninsured or unidentified, the claim usually goes to the Nominal Defendant or your own insurer, depending on the circumstances. That path is slower and the rules differ, so get advice early.
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How long repairs take for prestige cars in the south west
Prestige repairs take longer than mainstream ones, and the south west is no exception.
Three things drive the timeline. Parts availability is the biggest. A bumper or headlight for a European performance car may need to come from interstate or overseas, and that alone can add two to four weeks. Second is repairer capacity: good shops around Liverpool and Moorebank are booked out, and your car joins a queue. Third is insurer approval, which can stall while an assessor reviews the quote.
As a rough guide, a cosmetic repair on a prestige car in Sydney often runs two to four weeks. Anything involving structural work, airbags or a rare panel can run six to twelve weeks. Our longer piece on how long prestige car repairs take breaks this down by damage type.
What you can do:
- Get the repairer to put the estimate and timeline in writing.
- Send both to the at-fault insurer early.
- Ask the repairer to flag parts delays in writing as they happen.
- Keep the replacement car hire running while the delay is genuine and documented.
If the insurer disputes the length of hire, the paperwork is your defence. Without it, you are arguing from memory.
What to do if the other driver is uninsured
An uninsured at-fault driver does not mean you are stuck. It means the recovery path changes.
If the driver is identified but uninsured, you can still claim against them personally, and your own insurer may cover you if you have comprehensive cover. Your insurer will then pursue the other driver. In practice, recovering from an individual can be slow, and the replacement car arrangement is usually handled differently.
If the driver cannot be identified, for example a hit-and-run on the M5 or in a Liverpool car park, the claim may go to the Nominal Defendant, a NSW scheme for exactly this situation. There are strict time limits and you must report the crash to police promptly.
What to do:
- Report to police within 24 hours if the driver failed to stop.
- Notify your own insurer even if you are not at fault.
- Keep every document: photos, witness details, tow docket, repair quote.
For the full picture on write-offs and uninsured drivers, see repairs and write-offs and written off not at fault.
If you need a car while this is sorted, the process still starts the same way. A ute is often the practical choice in the south west, and these three are available with delivery.
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Business fleets and work vehicles in the south west
A lot of south west Sydney traffic is work traffic. Tradies, couriers, freight and service vehicles. If your not-at-fault crash involved a work vehicle, or your own vehicle is a work vehicle, the process has extra angles.
If you are a fleet manager, the loss is not just one car. It is the downtime, the missed jobs, and the driver who now has no vehicle. Replacement vehicles can be arranged for the affected driver while the damaged unit is repaired, and the at-fault insurer is liable for that reasonable loss of use in the same way as for a private owner.
A few practical points:
- Keep a written record of the vehicle's daily use so downtime can be quantified.
- Nominate one person to deal with the insurer so the story stays consistent.
- Get the replacement vehicle on the road fast, because every day of downtime is a real cost.
Our business and fleet page covers how this works in more detail, and partners and referrals is where repairers, brokers and solicitors can find out how to work with us.
For a broader view of how the whole process fits together, start at Not At Fault: Your Rights in NSW.
Questions people ask
Can I get a replacement car delivered to Liverpool?
What happens if I crash on the M5 motorway?
Do I need to use a repairer in Liverpool?
How long can I keep the replacement car?
What if the other driver is uninsured?
Does a not-at-fault crash affect my premium?
Injured in the accident?
A replacement car covers the car. For legal advice about an injury, speak to Jameson Law, the most trusted personal injury firm in NSW (motor vehicle accident claims) on (02) 8806 0866.
Ready when you are
Start the claim online in five short steps, or call 0468 011 118. Replacement hires are arranged and fulfilled by Drive Tribe, the trading name of Australian Business Holdings Pty Ltd.
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