Andrew Little
ACC Spokesperson
24 August 2012
Claimants shouldn’t be forgotten in ACC fallout
ACC must take the concerns of sensitive claims unit claimants seriously, and set up a high level unit to deal with the
outstanding complaints around breaches of privacy and misuse of information, Labour’s ACC spokesperson Andrew Little
says.
Two independent reports yesterday highlighted the "cavalier" nature of information management and called for a change in
culture within the Corporation.
"While the work of the two review teams will be helpful in moving to a healthier culture at ACC, it is still surprising
little was said by either review team about the fate of nearly 200 sensitive claims unit claimants who had some of their
details released in the mass privacy breach that was the subject of the investigation.
"The Privacy Commissioner's review treated the SCU claimants too lightly when it implied not much identifying
information was disclosed, but the report shows there was an identifying code for the issues under appeal, so
unauthorized ACC staff would know exactly what those claims were about.
"A couple of months ago Labour called for a high level independent review team to be set up straight away to deal with
all existing complaints about misuse of information.
"If ACC and Judith Collins are serious about restoring confidence, then this is an initiative that could go a long way
to doing so as well as exorcising some difficult demons that will only hold the Corporation back if they are not dealt
with.
"ACC really needs to accept that an entirely new approach is required. All of the difficult files of recent years need
to be reviewed with a fresh pair of eyes so everyone can move on with the confidence that they have been treated
fairly,” said Andrew Little.
ENDS