Agyei v AAI Limited t/as AAMI - [2025] NSWPIC 372

CERTIFICATE OF DETERMINATION OF MEMBER
CITATION:	Agyei v AAI Limited t/as AAMI [2025] NSWPIC 372
CLAIMANT:	Roselyn Anwti Agyei
INSURER:	AAI Limited t/as AAMI
MEMBER:	Elyse White
DATE OF DECISION:	1 August 2025
CATCHWORDS:	MOTOR ACCIDENTS - Motor Accident Injuries Act 2017; assessment of damages; liability wholly admitted; 16-year-old claimant a front seat passenger in a vehicle driven by her sister; vehicle rear-ended by insured driver; damages limited to economic loss; claimant a student at date of accident; since 2024 claimant studying biomedical science at university in Melbourne; whether claimant sustained an impairment to her economic loss; Held – claimant suffered an impairment to her employment which is not productive of past economic loss; buffer assessed for future economic loss; damages assessed in the sum of $100,000 plus agreed costs of $24,376.
DETERMINATIONS MADE:	CERTIFICATE 1. Damages assessed in the sum of $100,000 pursuant to s 7.34 of the Motor Accident Injuries Act 2017. 2. Costs and disbursements are assessed in the sum of $24,376.00.

STATEMENT OF REASONS

INTRODUCTION

On 14 February 2021, the claimant, Ms Roselyn Agyei was travelling in the front passenger seat of a vehicle driven by her sister when the insured’s vehicle rear ended their car whilst stationary on Stacey Street, Bankstown.
The ambulance attended the scene of the crash and after an examination by paramedics, she was conveyed to Bankstown Hospital where she was kept under observation overnight.
Ms Agyei lodged a claim for common law damages against the at fault driver which is managed by AAI Limited t/as AAMI (insurer). The insurer wholly admitted liability for the crash on 11 March 2024.
A dispute arose between the parties on the claimant’s entitlement to damages for non-economic loss. An application for the assessment of whole person impairment (WPI) was lodged with the Personal Injury Commission (Commission). A certificate was issued which assessed WPI not greater than 10%. Ms Agyei is not entitled to damages for non-economic loss.
Initially, the claim for damages was limited to future economic loss. A few days before the assessment conference, a claim was submitted for damages for past economic loss.
The insurer raised objections to the additional material submitted by the claimant in support for her past economic loss claim. However, the insurer submitted the assessment conference should proceed regardless.
After review of the additional material, I allowed it to form part of the claimant’s material with a caveat that it would depend on what weight would be given to this documentation.

ISSUES IN DISPUTE

The following issues are in dispute:
(a) Has the claimant sustained an impairment to her work capacity which is productive of past economic loss?
(b) What is the claimant’s most likely future circumstances but for the accident?

Has the claimant sustained an impairment to her work capacity which is productive of past economic loss?

The claimant was 16 years old at the time of this crash. She is currently 20 years old.
Ms Agyei was born in Ghana. She emigrated to Australia with her…

Grounds of appeal

[14] The appellant contends that the primary judge erred in finding that the respondent had discharged the onus of establishing the matters required under the relevant provision.

[15] It was submitted that his Honour failed to give adequate weight to the evidence of the second witness, and that the findings of fact were not reasonably open on the material before the Court.

[16] The respondent, for its part, submits that no error is disclosed, and that the conclusions reached were well within the range of outcomes available to the primary judge.

Consideration

[17] It is convenient to deal first with the question of construction, as the resolution of that issue informs the remaining grounds advanced by the appellant.

[18] For the reasons that follow, we are of the view that the appeal should be allowed in part and the matter remitted for further determination.

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Details

AGLC: Agyei v AAI Limited t/as AAMI [2025] NSWPIC 372
Case: [2025] NSWPIC 372
Decision Date: 1 August 2025

CaseChat Overview and Summary

In the case of Agyei v AAI Limited t/as AAMI, the claimant, a 16-year-old front seat passenger in a vehicle driven by her sister, sought damages following a rear-end collision caused by an insured driver. The defendant, AAI Limited trading as AAMI, admitted liability, and the matter was referred to the court for the assessment of damages under the Motor Accidents Injuries Act 2017. The primary dispute centred on whether the claimant had sustained an impairment to her economic capacity as a result of the accident and, if so, the appropriate quantification of any such impairment.

The court was required to determine whether the claimant's decision to pursue higher education in biomedical science at a university in Melbourne post-accident constituted an impairment to her economic capacity. Given that the claimant was a student at the time of the accident and has continued her studies, the court needed to assess if this educational pursuit represented a deviation from her likely economic trajectory had the accident not occurred. Furthermore, the court had to quantify the economic loss, if any, that resulted from the impairment to her employment prospects.

The court found that the claimant's choice to pursue higher education did not represent an impairment to her economic capacity as it was not a deviation from her pre-accident path. However, the court assessed a buffer for future economic loss due to the claimant's youth and the potential impact of the accident on her future career prospects. After considering all evidence and submissions, the court awarded the claimant $100,000 for future economic loss, plus agreed costs of $24,376. This amount was deemed to be a fair and reasonable compensation for the impairment to the claimant’s future earning capacity, considering her age and the nature of the injuries sustained.

Orders