What is ACC?
ACC is a Crown entity that delivers New Zealand’s accident insurance scheme as set out in the Accident Compensation Act 2001. The ACC Scheme provides 24-hour, comprehensive, no-fault personal injury cover for all New Zealanders and visitors to this country. The three core functions of ACC are to:
- Help prevent injuries at work, at home, during sport and recreation and on the road, and those caused by treatment
- Reduce the physical, emotional and social impacts of people’s injuries by funding timely treatment and rehabilitation that gets them back to work or independence as safely and quickly as possible
Minimise personal financial loss by paying contributions to treatment costs, and paying lump sum compensation or weekly compensation to people who can’t work because of their injuries
How do I lodge an injury claim with ACC?
You can lodge all acute injury claims at our clinic. Your Physiotherapist can help you fill in the necessary paperwork. If your injury is a work injury, then it will need to be lodged by your GP.
For an injury to be covered by ACC we must answer the following questions when filling in the paperwork:
- Has there been a single event accident – or a series of events in close succession leading to the injury?
- An example of a single event is falling off a ladder, and a series of events is being shunted from behind in 2 hours of go-kart racing.
- Was the injury a result of an accident?
- The AC Act defines an ‘accident’ as “a specific event or series of events that involves the application of force (including gravity) or resistance external to the human body, or involves the sudden movement of the body to avoid such a force or resistance external to the human body; or involves a twisting movement of the body”
- What were the circumstances of the injury?
- The ACC scheme covers all accidents or injuries that have happened in New Zealand and, in injuries that have occurred to New Zealand citizens while overseas if they have returned to New Zealand within 6-months of injury. We will need your Passport number to lodge an overseas injury claim.
ACC Funded Treatment
We are an ACC Endorsed Provider with a contract to provide Physiotherapy treatment to the public. ACC partially funds treatment so there is a surcharge to cover the full cost of treatment. Initial assessment appointments are usually 45-minutes duration and follow up appointments are 30-minutes. If more time is needed the Physiotherapist will discuss this with you.
As an ACC Endorsed Provider our clients can access up to fifty treatments per claim. There is no expiry date for these treatments so in the case of a very bad injury rehabilitation may occur intermittently over a 5-year period as you gradually return to optimal function and sport. During this time, we must ensure we are treating the pain and dysfunction resulting from the injury not just from day to day life.
At Physiotherapy and Pilates Evolved we want to empower you with the knowledge and tools to not only rehabilitate the injury but stop any ongoing pain and dysfunction. We hope this will make your rehabilitation journal as short as possible with optimal outcomes.
If you would like more information on ACC and how it works, this can be accessed from www.acc.co.nz
ACC BIRTHING INJURIES
We’re pleased to share that the Accident Compensation (Maternal Birth Injury and Other Matters) Amendment Bill passed its third reading at Parliament, including ACC cover for birthing injuries. Birthing injuries will be covered by ACC from 1 October 2022. Unfortunately we do not have any physio’s trained in the specialist area of womens health and therefore cannot see women for these injuries under ACC or privately. We recommend you contact our local women’s health physio, Angela Davis at The Physio Joint, 2 Augusta Street, Redcliffs, CHCH.