Dear Accident Compensation Corporation,

1) Does a Govt. Dept. issued 'document' e.g. birth cert, passport, drivers license etc. carry equal, higher or lower legal integrity to an ACC claims handler when compared with an ACC 'statutory declaration'?
I believe that a 'document' is a formal & legal representation of a certain set of events, & a 'statutory declaration' has legal implication with regard to almost all other non formal sets of events, but, I am unsure how an ACC claims handler approaches this issue.

2) How does a claims handler proceed with a claim when presented with conflicting information of equal stature, quantity & quality of source?

3) Is there a flow chart or process that is followed?

4) If so what is the process & has this process changed when each act has changed?

5) If this process has changed with the various acts, please explain the changes in process in relation to the 1982 act & the present act?

6) Is a signed & witnessed statement, produced by a police officer to a Coronial inquest, considered to have equal, more or lesser veracity to a claims handler, than an ACC 'statutory declaration'?

I understand that ACC have requirements of evidential standard before a claim can be accepted, & insomuch as all the acts allow ACC to receive & consider any information, regardless of whether it CAN be used in a court of law, is information, regarding a certain set of events that HAVE been accepted by a court of law as fact, considered to be more or less accurate, to a claims handler gathering information in consideration of a claim, than a 'statutory declaration' that has not yet faced a legal test?

I am interested in ACC policy regarding the procedural use of 'documentary', 'declaratory' & 'evidential' information & which, if any FORM of information, carries the higher onus of proof during the information gathering stage of an entitlement decision,(cover has been accepted) where there is conflicting information (non medical).

Document-Information of public record - Information supplied is true & correct as recorded by appropriate Govt. agency for public record?
Declaratory-Information supplied as true & correct where an individual/s can be held accountable to a court of law?
Evidential-Information that has been accepted by a court of law as being factual?

Yours faithfully,

L K Barber