New Zealand’s political leaders are once again crossing swords over the country’s national accident compensation scheme.

National Party leader Don Brash has hinted that he may re-privatise the Accident Compensation Corporation (ACC), which has sent the responsible minister, the excitable Ruth Dyson, scrambling for words.

She says Dr Brash knows the ACC is working but wants to radically alter the system “to suit his free-market ideology”. His plan to introduce private insurers would lead to rising costs for employers and a less comprehensive level of care for New Zealanders injured at work.

The state-run ACC provides personal injury cover to all New Zealanders and temporary visitors 24 hours a day. It includes workers’ compensation claims. 

Under the no-fault system, those covered cannot sue third parties for personal injury claims, other than for exemplary damages.

The ACC was briefly privatised by the National Party when it was in government in 1998, and private insurers were called in to offer workplace insurance across the country. But a return to a Labour Party government in 2000 saw the ACC renationalised.

Ms Dyson says Dr Bracks – a former head of the NZ Reserve Bank – is also considering abandoning the no-fault system. “Dr Brash has also proposed opening the door to expensive litigation for New Zealand companies by refusing to rule out giving people the right to sue.”

She says the ACC provides employers with competitive premium rates – just over one-third of the average paid in Australia.