Another embarrassing privacy breach by ACC, which sent an elderly client's details to the wrong person, has left ACC Minister Judith Collins fuming.
A client from ACC's sensitive claims unit received a bundle of information, including details about Auckland woman Diane Hawke's injury, compensation and complaints about the corporation, in March, the Dominion Post reports.
The client discovered the breach in July when she read the documents, and called and emailed ACC several times to complain.
Six weeks later, she found out Mrs Hawke had still not been informed of the breach, which occurred shortly after a major breach involving ACC claimant Bronwyn Pullar hit headlines.
Ms Collins was also unaware of the breach until the Dominion Post contacted her on Friday - despite having weekly meetings with ACC's bosses.
She said the breach was "totally unacceptable" and demanded an explanation from the corporation's outgoing chief executive Ralph Stewart.
Both the sensitive claims client and Mrs Hawke were stunned by ACC's handling of the latest breach.
"It's a bad, sick joke, and it's simply not good enough," the client said.
Revelations of the breach come just a week after the Privacy Commissioner and Auditor-General released reports into the breach where Ms Pullar was sent details of nearly 7000 ACC clients.
The Privacy Commissioner's investigation found systemic weaknesses in the corporation's culture, systems and processes, which left it open to potential breaches of privacy.
NZN