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Otago
Daily Times
June 17 2004
ACC
Letter to the Editor
by Dr Iliya Englin, Oxford [Abridged. - Ed.]
As an Australian, I could only laugh at the criticism of ACC by American
lawyer Andrew Straw (ODT, 10.6.04). Australia
has tried the US
system of suing anyone who doesn't wish you a nice day. As a result, lawyers
rent more space in Sydney CBD than retailers. Enormous amounts of money are
siphoned from productive enterprise to feed an army of sharks, who receive up
to 50% of all payouts.
Like any bureaucracy, ACC can
annoy, but I found it nothing but reasonable. I think that accident victims
in New Zealand get a very
reasonable deal, and malingerers soon find that it is easier to return to
work than live "on compo", a subculture in Australia.
I would be curious to see Mr
Straw's evidence that the reckless behaviour often seen here is due to
existence of ACC. Most of it seems to be perpetrated by idiots who do not
think of consequences. I don't think they would stop just because there was
no universal insurance for them. Litigation, importantly, does not prevent
negligent behaviour. In Australia,
litigation is an assembly line process which no longer even registers with
the public, and being sued does not mean that your safety profile will be
altered. Mr Straw has come to the wrong country. New Zealand can't even afford
first world hospitals - where is it going to get
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