ACC’s breach of claim data, in which private information was allegedly shared by staff for the purposes of mocking and demeaning the injuries of claimants, is the latest in a string of serious incidents that demand answers from the Minister responsible, says National’s ACC spokesperson Simon Watts.

“The sharing of personal information from ACC claimants is totally unacceptable under any circumstances, and people are especially appalled this data, including sensitive claims, was then shared on social media groups.

“This year, ACC has already been accused of mishandling sensitive information, and the failed rollout of their Next Generation Case Management has reportedly left staff crying in hallways and leaving ACC in huge numbers.

“Public confidence in ACC is critical to the system functioning, and claimants and providers are quickly losing faith.

“Every New Zealand worker, driver and business-owner pays into ACC – they deserve a system they can have faith in. Sadly, that trust is quickly going down the drain as ACC buries its collective head in the sand – alongside the Minister – and remains adamant it’s doing a good job maintain public trust.

“ACC’s annual reviews, released last week, show it has once again failed to meet its duties of confidence to vulnerable groups of New Zealanders.

“It’s time Carmel Sepuloni started paying attention to what’s going on in her portfolio and takes urgent action to restore public confidence in ACC.”