Not at Fault on the Hume Highway: A Sydney Driver's Guide

Where crashes happen on the Hume near Sydney

The Hume Motorway starts at Prestons, where the M31 begins, and runs south-west through Campbelltown, Camden Valley Way, Menangle, Mittagong, Bowral, Berrima, Goulburn, Yass and on to Albury and Melbourne. Most Sydney drivers only ever see the first 150 km, but that stretch has its own crash patterns.

The worst spots near Sydney tend to be the southbound climb past Camden Valley Way and the Menangle bends, where traffic slows suddenly and someone at the back is still doing 110. Further south, the Berrima and Sutton Forest sections catch people out in fog or heavy rain. On long weekends and Friday afternoons, the northbound run back into Sydney from Goulburn is a queue of caravans, trucks and tired drivers. That is when rear-end collisions spike: a caravan brakes for a crest, a truck does not see it in time, and the car in between gets hit.

Trucks are over-represented in Hume crashes because the highway is a freight corridor. A B-double weighs many times what your car does, so even a low-speed contact can damage a prestige body structure. Caravans and trailers also swing wide at on-ramps and service centre entries, which is where a lot of side-swipes happen.

If you are near Goulburn, the nearest hospital is Goulburn Base Hospital. Near Berrima, you are looking at Bowral and District Hospital. Know which one you are closer to before you need it.

What to do on the shoulder before police arrive

On the Hume, the shoulder is narrow and the traffic is fast. Your first job is to get out of the live lanes if the car will move, then get yourself and your passengers behind the barrier or well up the embankment. Do not stand between the cars to inspect damage.

Turn your hazard lights on. If you have a warning triangle, put it out only if it is safe to walk. At dusk or in rain, stay in the car with your seatbelt on if you cannot get to a safe spot off the road, and call Triple Zero (000).

Once everyone is safe, do these things in order:

1. Call 000 if anyone is injured, if lanes are blocked, or if there is fuel or debris on the road.
2. Call the police non-emergency line if it is a minor bingle with no injuries and the cars can be moved. For a crash on the Hume near Sydney, that is usually the NSW Police Assistance Line on 131 444. If you are south of the border, it is Victoria Police on 000 for emergencies or 131 444 for non-emergencies.
3. Photograph everything: the position of the cars, the road, the other driver's plates, their licence, their registration, and their insurer if they have it. Get the other driver's name, address, phone number and insurer.
4. Note the time, the weather, the traffic conditions and any witnesses. Ask a witness for their name and number before they drive off.

Do not say the crash was your fault, even if you think you may have contributed. Fault is decided later by insurers and, if it comes to it, a court. Keep your version of events factual: what you saw, what you did, what happened.

If the other driver is aggressive or refuses to exchange details, stay in your car and wait for police.

Which police force and which insurer

The Hume Highway crosses the NSW and Victorian border near Albury-Wodonga. If your crash is on the NSW side, it is a NSW Police matter. If it is on the Victorian side, it is Victoria Police. That sounds obvious, but it matters for the event number you will need for your claim and for which tow operator is legally allowed to attend.

Insurers are a different question. The other driver's insurer depends on where their car is registered and who they are insured with, not where the crash happened. A Sydney driver hit near Goulburn by a Victorian-registered truck may be dealing with a Victorian insurer, or with the truck's national fleet insurer. That changes the phone number you call and sometimes the claims process.

If you cannot get the other driver's insurer details at the scene, your own insurer can usually find them from the registration number. If you are not at fault, your own insurer may still be able to help, but you should understand how a not-at-fault claim affects your own policy before you lodge it.

For a not-at-fault crash, the at-fault driver's insurer is the one that should pay for your repairs and your replacement car. If they delay, you have options, including credit hire. The key is to keep the paperwork tight: event number, photos, witness details, and a written record of every call.

If you are unsure which insurer you are dealing with, start with your own. They will tell you what they need.

Towing a prestige car off the Hume without damage

Do not let a random tow truck hook up your car on the Hume. On a motorway, police or Transport for NSW may call a heavy tow for safety, but for a prestige car you want a flatbed with soft straps and a driver who has moved low-clearance cars before. A wheel-lift tow can damage a front lip, a rear diffuser or an alloy sump guard.

If your car is drivable and safe, you can drive it to a safer place before arranging a tow. If it is not, tell the operator exactly what the car is: make, model, year, whether it is all-wheel drive, and whether it has air suspension. All-wheel drive cars should not be towed with two wheels on the ground. Air suspension needs to be handled correctly or it can be damaged.

Where the car goes next matters. You have the right to choose your repairer, but if you are far from Sydney, a local country panel shop may not have the equipment or the factory parts access your car needs. Sometimes the right call is to have the car transported back to Sydney on a flatbed rather than repaired in Goulburn or Yass.

Before you sign anything, ask:

• Is this a flatbed?
• Where are you taking it?
• Who is paying for the tow?
• Can I get a copy of the tow authority?

If you are not at fault, the at-fault insurer should cover reasonable tow costs. Keep the receipt.

Getting a replacement car back to Sydney

If your car is towed to a country repairer and you live in Sydney, you still need to get home and get to work. A replacement car can be delivered to you, but on the Hume the logistics are different from a suburban crash. You may need the replacement delivered to a service centre, a motel, or a repairer's yard.

This is where a like-for-like replacement matters. If you drive a Range Rover Sport, a small hatchback is not a like-for-like replacement. The law in NSW, following the High Court decision in Arsalan v Rixon, supports the idea that a not-at-fault driver can recover the reasonable cost of a replacement vehicle that is comparable to their own, within reason. That does not mean you can hire a supercar for a month, but it does mean you are not expected to squeeze a family and luggage into a Yaris.

If you are booking a replacement, you can check availability and have it delivered. 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.

For a Hume crash, choose a replacement that can handle the trip if you need to get back to the repairer or to work. A luxury SUV is often the practical choice.

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Repairs when the nearest dealer is in another state

If your car is a prestige or performance model, the nearest franchised dealer may be in Sydney, Melbourne or Canberra. That affects parts availability and repair time. A country panel shop can do excellent work, but it may not have the diagnostic equipment, the aluminium welding capability or the factory approval to repair a modern prestige body.

Before you agree to a repair location, ask these questions:

• Does the shop have the manufacturer's repair methods and equipment for your model?
• Are the parts coming from Australia or overseas?
• Will the repair affect your factory warranty or your car's resale value?
• Can the shop handle the paint match and the calibration of driver-assistance systems?

If the answer is no, the car should be transported to a repairer who can. That may mean a flatbed back to Sydney. The at-fault insurer should pay reasonable transport costs, but you may need to push for it.

Keep a written record of every conversation, including the date, the time, the name of the person you spoke to and what they said. If the insurer delays authorisation, that is not your problem to solve alone. You have the right to have your car repaired within a reasonable time, and you can keep a replacement car while the repair is done, provided the hire is reasonable.

If the repair drags on because parts are on backorder, ask the repairer for an ETA in writing and pass it to the insurer.

If the other driver is from interstate

Interstate drivers on the Hume are common: Victorian plated cars, Queensland trucks, caravans from South Australia. If the at-fault driver is from interstate, you may be dealing with an insurer in another state. The law that applies to your claim is generally the law where the crash happened, so a crash near Goulburn is a NSW matter even if the other driver is from Melbourne.

The practical problems are:

• Getting the other driver's insurer details can take longer.
• Their insurer may not have a local assessor.
• Correspondence may be slower.

You can still claim. If the other driver's insurer is slow, you can use credit hire to get a replacement car now and let the hire company recover the cost from the at-fault insurer later. That is a commercial arrangement, not a loan to you, and it is designed for exactly this situation.

If the other driver is uninsured or cannot be identified, your options change. You may need to claim on your own policy or, in some cases, apply to the Nominal Defendant. Talk to your insurer or a solicitor about that.

Do not let an interstate insurer tell you that you must use their repairer or their hire car company. You have the right to choose, as long as the cost is reasonable.

Keeping the replacement until yours is right

You are entitled to a replacement car for the reasonable time it takes to repair yours, not just for a few days. If the repair takes six weeks because parts are slow, a reasonable hire period can be six weeks. The test is reasonableness: the hire car should be comparable to yours, the rate should be reasonable, and the period should match the repair time.

Insurers sometimes try to cut the hire off early. If that happens, ask for their reasons in writing. If the repair is not finished, you can keep the replacement and let the hire company deal with the insurer. That is how credit hire works: you sign an agreement, you do not pay upfront, and the hire company recovers from the at-fault insurer.

If your car is written off, the replacement car generally stops when the insurer pays you the agreed value, not when the tow truck takes the car. If you are not at fault, you may also be able to claim for loss of use while you wait for payment.

When you are ready to book a replacement, check availability and have it delivered to your home, your work or the repairer.

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For more detail on how long repairs take, read our guide to prestige repair times in Sydney.

The first 24 hours after a Hume crash

The first day is when the paperwork is easiest and the stress is highest. Do these things in order:

1. Make sure everyone is safe and get medical help if needed.
2. Call the police if required and get the event number.
3. Collect the other driver's details and photos.
4. Notify your insurer, even if you are not at fault.
5. Arrange a tow to a repairer you trust, or ask for the car to be taken to a holding yard until you decide.
6. Arrange a replacement car if you need one.
7. Start a file: event number, photos, witness details, tow receipt, and a log of every call.

If you are not at fault, you should not be paying for the other driver's mistake. The at-fault insurer should cover your reasonable repair costs, tow and replacement car. If they refuse or delay, you have options, including credit hire and, if necessary, legal action.

For a step-by-step guide to the first day, see our article on what to do in the first 24 hours. If your car is being repaired, you can read about the process here.

Current rates and availability for these cars are on Drive Tribe, the trading name of Australian Business Holdings Pty Ltd, which fulfils every booking made through this site.