‘Hug of death’ case denied ACC cover
A woman exposed to asbestos by her dad when she was a child has been denied ACC cover in court.
Deanna Trevarthen’s claim of second-hand asbestos exposure had the potential to be a precedentsetter, with ACC cover currently only available to those exposed at work. Labour had pledged to review the eligibility of secondhand exposure victims.
ACC Minister Iain Lees-Galloway said Labour had asked for advice on the policy, and was awaiting feedback, but could provide no time frame for changes.
Trevarthen, who died in 2016, aged 45, was one of the youngest Kiwis to die from mesothelioma, an aggressive form of cancer linked to asbestos exposure.
An Official Information Act request showed that between 2013 and 2016 roughly 10 per cent of work-related mesothelioma cases were rejected by ACC. A total of 269 mesothelioma cases were lodged in the 2013-2016 period.
Lawyer Beatrix Woodhouse pursued the claim in the Wellington Lawyer Beatrix Woodhouse District Court as an accident relating to the inhalation of a foreign object, rather than a workrelated accident.
‘‘This case does set a precedent, an unfortunate one – unless we succeed at appeal,’’ she said.
Sister-in-law Angela Calver said Trevarthen was exposed when she embraced her father after work.
The court’s rejection of the accidental inhalation claim was nonsensical, Calver said, because it suggested she had exposed herself to asbestos on purpose.