Since then, the man has appealed that decision twice before it was reviewed by an independent panel in 2023 which also opted to decline his application for a new vehicle.
ACC has maintained that a 4WD has nothing to do with treating his injuries and that he already has a vehicle - albeit only 2WD - that enables him to get around.
In July this year, the man took his claim to the District Court in Wellington where he emphasised that his request for a 4WD is to meet a need, not a “want.”
The man suffered a severe knee injury as a result of an accident in 2009. He was also granted cover in 2011 for depression and further cover in 2021 for weight gain caused by his physical and mental injuries.
After several years of back and forth, ACC agreed to buy the man his own vehicle in 2018 as there was limited public transport available where he lives.
He told the court earlier this year that it met his needs in terms of getting him to the gym, pool and shops.
However, the man wanted to take his children fishing, hunting and white-baiting when they visit which requires driving on sand or off-road and due to his injury, he can’t walk any significant distance without pain.
He said that rough dirt roads where he lived were not passable in rain or snow and participating in recreational activities such as surfcasting and driving 4WD bush tracks would assist with the management of his covered depression.
By contrast, ACC said that in order to fund the purchase of 4WD it would need to be an essential part of his treatment, or rehabilitation. Needs it says are already met by the car it already helped him buy.
ACC said that if he wanted he could sell his Navara and use the money to help pay for a new car.
The man’s claim was heard by Judge Denese Henare at the Wellington District Court earlier this year where she found that ACC had already contributed to his rehabilitative needs when it helped buy him the Navara.
“…while the Court has empathy for (the man’s) position that participating in various recreational activities, such as fishing off the beach and white baiting, that require a 4WD vehicle may reduce his feelings of isolation, there is no independent evidence to support that position beyond the current activities in which he participates,” Judge Henare said in her recently-released ruling.
“The purpose of social rehabilitation is to ‘assist in restoring a claimant’s independence to the maximum extent practicable’, that does not mean the Corporation is required to provide all possible forms of rehabilitation available.”
Judge Henare said the purpose of the Accident Compensation Act was for the Corporation “to assist in restoring a claimant’s independence to the maximum extent practicable” rather than “possible.”
In her ruling, she declined the man’s claim on the basis that he had not proven it was essential for his rehabilitative needs.
Jeremy Wilkinson is an Open Justice reporter based in Manawatū covering courts and justice issues with an interest in tribunals. He has been a journalist for nearly a decade and has worked for NZME since 2022.
