Repair Delays: Who Pays for the Hire Car
If the repair delay is not your fault, the at-fault insurer generally remains liable for your reasonable replacement car hire for the whole reasonable repair period, not just the first week or two. The insurer will often argue that a delay is not its problem, but that argument usually fails when the delay is caused by the repairer, the parts supply chain or the insurer's own processes.
This page explains how the reasonable hire period is measured in New South Wales, what the at-fault insurer is actually liable for, and how to document a delay from day one so your claim holds up.
Key takeaways
- If the repair delay is not your fault, the at-fault insurer can remain liable for your reasonable hire car costs for the whole reasonable repair period.
- The High Court decision in Arsalan v Rixon confirms that deprivation of use is a recoverable loss, measured by the reasonable cost of a comparable hire.
- Document every delay in writing from day one, including parts order dates, insurer approval dates and repairer updates.
- Parts backorders and insurer-nominated repairer delays are still recoverable if they flow from the accident and are not your doing.
- Escalate in writing to the claims officer, then the insurer's internal complaints process, then AFCA if the dispute continues.
- The argument insurers run on long repairs
- Why a delay that is not your fault is still recoverable
- What the at-fault insurer is actually liable for
- Documenting the delay from day one
- The difference between a repair delay and a parts backorder
- When the insurer's own repairer causes the delay
- Escalation: what works and what wastes time
- When to bring in a solicitor
- Choosing a replacement car that matches the wait
The argument insurers run on long repairs
The most common pushback goes something like this: "We accepted liability for the accident, not for how long your repairer takes." It sounds reasonable until you unpack it. The insurer is not being asked to guarantee a repair time. It is being asked to put you back in the position you would have been in had the accident not happened. If the accident had not happened, you would still be driving your car. Every day the repair runs, you are out of a car because of the accident.
Insurers run a few variations on the theme. Some say the hire should stop once the parts arrive, as if the car reassembles itself. Some say you should have accepted a cash settlement and bought something else. Some say the delay is between you and your repairer, so take it up with them. Some simply stop paying and wait to see whether you push back.
None of these arguments deal with the actual legal test, which is whether the hire was reasonable in the circumstances. A delay caused by a parts backorder, a repairer's workload or an insurer's own approval process is not your fault. The insurer's liability does not evaporate because the repair is slow.
What insurers are genuinely entitled to challenge is the rate and the duration of the hire. If you hire a car far above your own car's class for months on end, expect a fight. If you hire a like-for-like car for the reasonable time the repair takes, the argument is much harder for them to run.
Why a delay that is not your fault is still recoverable
The legal foundation in New South Wales is the High Court decision in Arsalan v Rixon [2021] HCA 19. In simple terms, a person who has been deprived of their car by another driver's negligence can recover the reasonable cost of hiring a replacement, even if they did not actually hire one. The Court confirmed that the loss is the deprivation of use, and the measure is what it would have cost to hire a comparable vehicle for a reasonable period.
That principle does not switch off because the repair is taking longer than expected. If anything, a longer deprivation means a larger loss. The question is always whether the period and the rate are reasonable.
What makes a delay recoverable is causation. If the delay flows from the accident, it is part of the loss. Parts for a Porsche Taycan or a BMW M car are not sitting on a shelf in every suburb. A bumper, a headlight or a control module can take weeks to arrive from Germany. That is a direct consequence of the accident.
Where people come unstuck is when they let the delay drift without documenting it. If you cannot show why the repair took eight weeks instead of three, the insurer will argue the extra five weeks were your choice or your repairer's inefficiency. The fix is boring but effective: keep a written timeline from day one.
For a fuller explanation of the not-at-fault framework in NSW, see not at fault explained and how credit hire works.
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.
What the at-fault insurer is actually liable for
The at-fault insurer is liable for the reasonable cost of a like-for-like replacement car for the reasonable repair period. Like-for-like does not mean identical. It means comparable in class, size, transmission and general standing. A BMW M3 owner is not expected to accept a base Corolla for six weeks, and an insurer that offers one is inviting a dispute.
What the insurer is not liable for is an open-ended hire at any rate for any duration. The reasonable period usually runs from the day your car became undriveable or was handed to the repairer, to the day it is ready for collection. It includes time waiting for parts, time waiting for insurer approval, and time in the queue at the repairer, provided those delays are not your doing.
It also includes the reasonable cost of collection and delivery, and any delivery fee that is part of the hire arrangement. If you are hiring through a credit hire provider, the rate, the bond and every fee are shown on the car's page before payment. The bond equals the excess you choose. Paying by card carries a small surcharge; bank transfer and cash on the rental do not.
If you need a car while a prestige repair drags on, you can arrange an accident replacement car in Sydney and have it delivered to your repairer or your home.
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Start my claimDocumenting the delay from day one
Insurers do not pay on vibes. They pay on evidence. The single best thing you can do is build a dated file that shows exactly what happened, when, and who was responsible for each wait.
Keep the following, ideally in one folder or email thread:
- The police event number, if police attended, and the other driver's details.
- Photos of the damage, taken at the scene and again at the repairer.
- The repairer's booking confirmation and the date the car was dropped off.
- Every written update from the repairer, including parts order dates and estimated arrival dates.
- Every email, letter or text from the insurer, including any offer to settle or cut off hire.
- A simple one-page timeline you update weekly: date, what happened, what is next.
If the repairer gives you a verbal update, send them a short email summarising it and ask them to confirm. That turns a phone call into a document. If the insurer calls you, follow up with an email that says what you understood was said and ask them to correct you if you are wrong.
For a checklist of what to collect in the first day or two, see first 24 hours and evidence to collect at the scene. If the insurer is already stalling, insurer delays replacement car walks through the escalation steps.
The difference between a repair delay and a parts backorder
These two get lumped together, but they behave differently in a claim. A repair delay is usually about labour or workshop capacity: the panel shop is busy, the estimator has not assessed the car, the insurer has not approved the supplementary quote. A parts backorder is about supply: the part exists, it has been ordered, and it is sitting in a warehouse in Stuttgart or Singapore waiting for a container.
Both can be recoverable, but the evidence looks different. For a workshop delay, you want the repairer's booking records and the insurer's approval dates. For a parts backorder, you want the parts order confirmation, the estimated arrival date, and any update showing the date slipping.
Parts delays are especially common on prestige and performance cars. A carbon fibre bonnet for an M car, a specific Taycan headlight, or a bespoke trim piece for a Silverado can take weeks. This is not the repairer being lazy. It is the reality of low-volume parts.
If your car is sitting at a shop in Alexandria or Silverwater waiting on a part, keep the hire running and keep the paperwork. The insurer may try to argue that once the part is ordered, your loss has crystallised. That is not how it works. You are still deprived of your car.
For more on this, see parts delays prestige car repairs NSW and parts delays and your replacement car.
When the insurer's own repairer causes the delay
Many insurers push you towards their preferred repairer network. Sometimes that is fine. Sometimes it is the source of the delay. The shop is overloaded, the insurer's approval process is slow, or the assessor keeps requesting more photos before signing off a supplementary quote.
If you are using an insurer-nominated repairer and the delay is on their side, the insurer's argument that "the delay is not our problem" is particularly weak. It chose the shop. It controls the approval workflow. It set the process that is now causing the wait.
You are generally entitled to choose your own repairer in NSW, and many prestige owners do. If you use your own shop, the insurer may argue it should not have to pay for a slower or more expensive repairer. That is a real risk, but it is manageable if the shop is reputable and the delay is genuinely caused by parts or insurer approval rather than gold-plating.
The practical point is this: whoever is causing the delay, document it. If the insurer's shop is the bottleneck, say so in writing and copy the insurer. If the insurer's approval process is the bottleneck, put the dates in a timeline and send it to the claims officer.
For more on dealing with the other side, see dealing with insurers and repairs and write-offs.
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Escalation: what works and what wastes time
Most delay disputes are resolved by a firm, polite, well-documented letter to the claims officer. What works is a clear timeline, a clear statement of what you are asking for, and a deadline for a response.
What wastes time:
- Angry phone calls with no written follow-up.
- Repeating the same complaint to a call centre without escalating to a complaints manager.
- Threatening legal action you are not ready to take.
- Letting the hire lapse for a week to "save money" and then trying to restart it.
- Accepting a low cash settlement for the hire without understanding what you are giving up.
A useful escalation ladder looks like this:
- Written request to the claims officer with the timeline and the amount in dispute.
- Internal complaints process with the insurer, in writing.
- If unresolved, the Australian Financial Complaints Authority (AFCA), which is free for consumers.
- If the dispute is about the hire cost itself and you are the hirer, a solicitor's letter often moves things.
If your car is a write-off rather than a repair, the analysis changes. See statutory write-off NSW what happens next and cash settlement vs repair not at fault.
When to bring in a solicitor
Most not-at-fault hire claims do not need a solicitor. The amounts are modest, the liability is clear, and the insurer pays once the paperwork is in order. But there are situations where a solicitor earns their fee.
Bring in a solicitor if:
- The insurer denies liability outright, not just the duration of the hire.
- The hire claim is large enough that the insurer is playing hardball on rate or duration.
- You are being pursued personally for a hire car debt by a credit hire company or its funder.
- There is a dispute about whether your car is a write-off.
- You have business or fleet losses that go beyond the car itself.
For business and fleet matters, see business and fleet and fleet vehicle repair and write-off delays. For referrals, see partners and referrals.
If you are ready to arrange a like-for-like car while the repair drags on, you can book a not-at-fault accident replacement. 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.
Choosing a replacement car that matches the wait
If your repair is going to run for weeks, the replacement car matters more than it would for a three-day panel beat. You want something that matches your own car closely enough that the insurer cannot argue you have upgraded at its expense, and comfortable enough that you are not miserable for a month.
For a prestige sedan owner, a like-for-like replacement might be a performance sedan with similar power and seating. For a ute owner, it might be a full-size pick-up. For an electric vehicle owner, it might be another EV so you are not suddenly paying for petrol.
Consider the practical side too. If you commute from Mosman to the CBD, a smaller car is easier to park. If you tow a boat to Pittwater on weekends, you need the tow capacity. If you have child seats, you need the anchor points.
Here are a few cars that suit longer replacement periods:
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For a broader look at matching a car to your own, see like for like and replacement by car type.
Questions people ask
Can the at-fault insurer cut off my hire car mid-repair?
What evidence do I need for a delay claim?
Does it matter which repairer I used?
How long can I keep a replacement car during a repair delay?
What if the insurer says the delay is my repairer's fault?
Do I need a solicitor for a hire car delay dispute?
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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