8867 (2026). Mike Davidson to the Minister for ACC

8867 (2026). Mike Davidson to the Minister for ACC: Are surveillance operation staff required to submit daily reports on their movements, actions and findings when carrying out surveillance on ACC claimants?

Hon Scott Simpson: I am advised by ACC that it has not commissioned any surveillance of clients since 2019, primarily because ACC has shifted to a more preventative approach to detect fraud, misuse, and waste focused on early detection and intervention. As such, since 2023, no clients have been surveilled, with zero cost spent on surveillance operations of ACC claimants. ACC has an external investigation support panel that can be commissioned to provide surveillance for its investigations, reporting directly to the Fraud Investigation Manager. Before proposing any surveillance, authorisation must be obtained from staff with delegated authority in the Fraud Prevention and Investigation team after consultation with Legal and Privacy teams. Surveillance would only be considered after all other relevant lines of enquiry or investigative techniques have been exhausted or deemed impractical. If surveillance were to be initiated, daily reporting is required, and it would comply with the Search and Surveillance Act 2012. The purpose of such surveillance would be to observe individuals to obtain evidential material; therefore, clients would not be informed, as notification would defeat the purpose. ACC may consider informing me on a case-by-case basis but typically does not communicate operational matters to Ministers.