Criticism of ACC over sick man's six-year wait

A Dunedin man's six-year battle to gain funding support highlights the need to strengthen ACC's code of claimant rights, ACC campaigner Denise Powell says.

Garney Scoullar (51), a city resident now living in a house bus near the Wingatui Racecourse, remains ill from neurotoxicity arising from solvents he encountered in his work as a city spray painter in the late 1970s and in the 1980s.

But despite a six-year struggle with ACC during which one district court decision and two independent reviews have gone his way, he is yet to receive any weekly earnings-related compensation.

Mr Scoullar was forced to leave his painting job at Fulton Hogan in April 1980 after becoming sick, experiencing migraines and troubling psychiatric symptoms, including hallucinations.

Mrs Powell, who is president of Acclaim Otago, a support group for ACC claimants, said she was concerned about the amount of time involved in Mr Scoullar's case, which featured in an Otago Daily Times story late last month.

"It could have been handled far more efficiently and speedily," Mrs Powell said in an interview.

Mr Scoullar had not received weekly earnings-related compensation, but also, crucially, had not received the ACC support he needed for the rehabilitation to improve his health meanwhile.

Mrs Powell is also a member of ACC's Consumer Outlook Group, a national forum involving community representatives and ACC management.

The advent of the claimants' code, in early 2003, had been a "positive move", she said.

The code sets out a detailed complaints procedure and emphasises eight key rights, including the right to be treated with dignity and respect, the right to be treated fairly and to have the claimants' views considered.

Several of Mr Scoullar's rights may have been breached, including his right to be treated fairly and to have his views considered, she said.

However, his case also highlighted "the need for reform in terms of the code".

The code could be improved by adding further "teeth", to ensure that claimants gained more effective redress if rights were breached.

The system could also be "beefed up" by requiring cases to be dealt with in a more timely and efficient way.

Susan Brooks, the former Australian banking industry ombudsman, had recently undertaken a review of the code for ACC, Mrs Powell said.

ACC corporate affairs manager Laurie Edwards commented recently that after the district court had granted ACC cover for a complex organic brain injury, ACC had had to determine what actual assistance for Mr Scoullar was appropriate, including financial help, rehabilitation or other support.

His condition was complex and his circumstances confused and ACC had found the situation "just as frustrating as Mr Scoullar".

ACC had always sought to process claims as quickly as possible and had met Mr Scoullar and his solicitor and agreed on a course of action, Mr Edwards said.

Mr Scoullar said that since the earlier ODT story appeared he had received a letter from ACC seeking more details about his previous employment and noting that his incapacity would need to be assessed.

Such matters could have been dealt with earlier and he was concerned that further delays could result.