WA’s Catastrophic Injuries Support (CIS) scheme has assessed 28 people as eligible for treatment and care in its first year, and their young ages compared with forecasts has led to an increase in expected average costs.

The Insurance Commission of WA says a further 20 people were accepted through the compulsory third party (CTP) scheme in the year to June 30, while another 13 potential cases are undergoing an eligibility assessment.

The CIS scheme was introduced on July 1 last year to cover people catastrophically injured in car crashes where fault cannot be attributed to another driver.

“The people catastrophically injured on our roads have been younger and more severely injured than we estimated in the first year,” Commission Secretary Kane Blackman said.

That caused the average cost of lifetime support to rise to $4.9 million per person, against a forecast of $4 million, because high-cost care will be required for a longer period.

Acquired brain injuries were the most common catastrophic injury, representing 69% of eligible cases across the CIS and CTP schemes. Spinal injuries accounted for 29%.

The commission says 46% of people were within the 15-34 age group and 75% were males, showing young men continue to be a vulnerable group on the road.

Regional WA accounted for 52% of crashes resulting in catastrophic injury, with the state’s southwest representing 23% of that total.