The review will focus on ACC’s claims management processes, ensuring the right interventions are in place to support claimants in regaining independence quickly.
Alongside this, Doocey said he is working with the ACC Board and the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment to strengthen performance monitoring and improve the cost-effectiveness of social rehabilitation services.
Doocey acknowledged ACC’s deteriorating performance over the past decade, with rehabilitation rates dropping, weekly compensation costs rising, and average claim costs increasing. These issues have contributed to the need for levy increases, which he confirmed would rise over the next three years:
•Earners and business levies will increase by up to 5% annually for three years. For someone earning the median full-time wage of $70,000, this will mean an additional $42 in the 2025/26 financial year and a total increase of $140 over three years.
•Motor vehicle levies will increase by 5% annually, plus an adjustment for inflation.
BusinessNZ supports independent review
The announcement of the review has been welcomed by BusinessNZ, which highlighted the financial strain levy increases would place on businesses and households.
BusinessNZ Chief Executive Katherine Rich said, “Businesses and households deserve better cost management and more transparency and accountability from ACC. It is hoped that an independent review will help achieve that.”
Rich acknowledged that the Government had taken BusinessNZ’s concerns into account, including serious issues with rehabilitation rates and ACC’s funding policies. She raised specific concerns about claim volumes rising faster than population growth and the need for ACC to improve its systems for accepting, managing, and monitoring claims.
“A comprehensive review of ACC’s funding policy is also needed. We pointed out that some ACC Accounts are currently underfunded, which will become very costly for future levy-payers. The Earners Account is currently only 90% funded, with a shortfall of $1.6 billion,” Rich said.
She also stressed that ACC’s funding practices do not align with the spirit of the Accident Compensation Act, which requires all accounts to be fully funded to meet the lifetime cost of claims.
“We welcome the coming independent review of ACC on behalf of all businesses, workers, and vehicle owners paying ACC levies who need assurance that the Scheme is being operated according to its statutory requirements,” Rich added.
Broadcaster Chris Lynch is an award winning journalist who also produces Christchurch news and video content for domestic and international companies. Chris blogs at Chris Lynch Media - where this article was sourced.
Doocey acknowledged ACC’s deteriorating performance over the past decade, with rehabilitation rates dropping, weekly compensation costs rising, and average claim costs increasing. These issues have contributed to the need for levy increases, which he confirmed would rise over the next three years:
•Earners and business levies will increase by up to 5% annually for three years. For someone earning the median full-time wage of $70,000, this will mean an additional $42 in the 2025/26 financial year and a total increase of $140 over three years.
•Motor vehicle levies will increase by 5% annually, plus an adjustment for inflation.
BusinessNZ supports independent review
The announcement of the review has been welcomed by BusinessNZ, which highlighted the financial strain levy increases would place on businesses and households.
BusinessNZ Chief Executive Katherine Rich said, “Businesses and households deserve better cost management and more transparency and accountability from ACC. It is hoped that an independent review will help achieve that.”
Rich acknowledged that the Government had taken BusinessNZ’s concerns into account, including serious issues with rehabilitation rates and ACC’s funding policies. She raised specific concerns about claim volumes rising faster than population growth and the need for ACC to improve its systems for accepting, managing, and monitoring claims.
“A comprehensive review of ACC’s funding policy is also needed. We pointed out that some ACC Accounts are currently underfunded, which will become very costly for future levy-payers. The Earners Account is currently only 90% funded, with a shortfall of $1.6 billion,” Rich said.
She also stressed that ACC’s funding practices do not align with the spirit of the Accident Compensation Act, which requires all accounts to be fully funded to meet the lifetime cost of claims.
“We welcome the coming independent review of ACC on behalf of all businesses, workers, and vehicle owners paying ACC levies who need assurance that the Scheme is being operated according to its statutory requirements,” Rich added.
Broadcaster Chris Lynch is an award winning journalist who also produces Christchurch news and video content for domestic and international companies. Chris blogs at Chris Lynch Media - where this article was sourced.
5 comments:
I believe that not every accident should be covered by ACC. For example if you go mountain biking and fall off; you should not be covered. You chose to go mountain biking. You should have private insurance for that. This could save the government a lot of money. As well I have experienced triage nurses trying to put down medical problems on ACC. ACC has become a rort.
If you are committing an illegal act (speeding, drunk driving, motorbike riding without safety gear, cycle and electric scooter riding without a helmet, etc) then you shouldn’t be covered by ACC. If you are behaving deliberately in a manner likely to cause bodily harm then you can queue like the rest of us for hospital treatment and in-home care.
Rehabilitation rates are dropping because ACC are refusing claims from obvious accidents, despite originally accepting them. After a few months some people are finding they feel a bit better then suddenly they are majorly sore or have another accident in the same area without major injury, but exacerbating the original one, however, despite it being, say a fall of 3 metres off a step onto concrete, on an already injured shoulder or arm, they will not accept it as an accident, so deny you cover and tell you that you still have cover for the original injury but the rest of the arm shows arthritis (the B all and end all of the get out of jail card for ACC). Others put in obvious non accident claims, but because they are of a certain ethnicity they can get everything paid for without question, for as long as they want, including petrol money or taxi money. If you are not that ethnicity, try and you will fail. That is why you are asked for your ethnicity on forms.
agree with both comments above therefore we need a new model where people can insure themselves i.e. private healthcare insurance and the right to sue. It will happen one day because this model is broken.
And the review needs to focus on their out of control costs ... Particularly salary which are way out of whack with the market.
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