Our Insurance Claims Process

Before Making a Claim

As establishing negligence can be time consuming and difficult, if you hold a policy of insurance (i.e., motor vehicle or home insurance), you may wish to consider lodging a claim with your insurer because in most cases, the onerous test of proving negligence is not required. Council recommends that you seek professional legal advice if you are unsure about whether you can claim for your loss or damage.

The process of investigation and determination can take 6 to 8 weeks. We endeavour to respond to claims as quickly as possible, but claims brought in negligence are often complicated and we ask for your patience and co-operation during this time.

Dependent upon the nature of the claim, Council may decide to refer the claim to our insurer’s for either determination or review.  If that occurs, you will be contacted by a Claims consultant from JLT who will work with you whilst the claim is being determined.

Factors that are considered in determining liability for any claim include:

• If you are able to provide evidence related to the cause of your damage.
• You are unable to establish the cause of your damage.
• For tree related matters where damage was allegedly caused by natural shedding and/or resulting from a weather event.
• For tree related matters where damage was allegedly caused by tree roots when we were not previously aware of the problem.
• When we are complying with our statutory duties under relevant legislation.
• Incidents on roads and footpaths which are not on our Road Register such as arterial roads, private access roads or roads managed by Transport for NSW (Delhi, Epping, Lane Cove, Victoria, Marsden and Blaxland Roads, Devlin, Church, and Lawson Street; First Avenue along with Brush Road (between Rutledge – Lawson Street) and Rutledge Street (between Lawson Street – First Avenue).
• Damage caused by a contractor acting on behalf of Council.  Please refer such claims directly to the relevant contractor.
• Incidents relating to the condition of pit lids or other infrastructure belonging to utility companies such as Telstra, Optus, NBN, water, power, and gas companies. Please refer to the relevant utility company website for information on how to make a claim.
• Claims for damage to an asset where the responsibility to maintain the asset in good condition falls on the property owner. Please note that private property owners are responsible for maintaining stormwater pipes, downpipes, gully pits, private stormwater outlets and any other components of drainage systems in good condition and in compliance with Council’s requirements. This includes maintenance of the stormwater system on the property as well as any connection to our stormwater system. When redirecting and/or concentrating stormwater flows, property owners are required to collect the stormwater and direct it to a legal point of discharge.

Making a Claim against Council

You can make a claim against us for damage or loss if we are at fault or negligent. You must provide evidence to support your claim. We will assess your claim on its merits, based on the evidence you provide. Claims should be made by emailing claims@ryde.nsw.gov.au and providing the information below:

• Your full name, address, and contact number.
• Date and time of the incident.
• Map and exact address of the location of the incident (with an ‘X’ marking the exact spot).
• Photographs of the incident location and photographs of the alleged damage
• Why you believe Council is liable.
• Details of any previous report/s (prior to this incident), made by you to Council about the hazard, including Service Report number.

Council reserves its right to recover all or any costs that have been unnecessarily or unreasonably incurred by the Council in successfully defending insurance claims made against Council. 

Potholes

The legislation that applies to Council’s responsibility for damages resulting from potholes or any other hazards on its roads is the Civil Liability Act 2002 (NSW) (‘the Act’). The Act sets out several principles to be employed in determining whether Council is liable for injury, loss or damage suffered by road users. For example, section 45 of the Act provides protection for road authorities for failing to carry out road work in some circumstances. Council may not be liable for damages arising from potholes or other hazards unless Council was aware of the pothole and has been negligent in not addressing the risk within Council’s ability in terms of resources.

Sewer and Storm Water Pipes

Sewer and storm water pipes are assets of the property owner and therefore the property owner is responsible for its maintenance. Some trunk stormwater is owned by Council and some owned by Sydney Water.

If a blockage occurs in your private sewer or storm water pipe, you may need to engage a licenced plumber to fix the problem.

Blocked sewer lines may be caused by tree roots, inappropriate material put down the drains, sections of pipe collapsing, ground subsidence, debris, or siltation.

Tree roots are not known to enter pipes which are well maintained. If tree roots have entered a pipe this is usually the results of the roots seeking water that is available because of the actual deterioration of the pipe (due to age/quality etc) or the failure of the seals joining the pipes.

Driveways and Private Structures

Driveways and private structures are assets of the property owner and therefore the property owner’s responsibility to maintain and repair.

Where property owners believe that public tree roots are damaging or have the potential to cause damage to driveways and structures, the property owner should contact the Council as soon as possible to allow Council to take appropriate action concerning the public tree.