ACC pays $23m to Nelson

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Labourers, carpenters and joiners have had the most work-related accidents in the past 12 months, according to an ACC injury comparison report which says it paid out more than $23 million to Nelson residents during the year.

The annual report, which accounts for the 2012/13 financial year, was released last week and includes statistics on the total number of claims, how much was paid out, and which occupations and sports caused the most injuries across 72 different territorial authorities in New Zealand.

From the 72, Nelson City is ranked 28th in terms of the most injury-prone, with Tasman in 48th position.

If it was separated by region, Nelson City would the most injury-prone and Tasman the least, but unlike most other regions in New Zealand, they are not comprised of a number of smaller territorial authorities which can average out the injury rate.

ACC paid out $23,674,005 to Nelson residents, with 19,062 claims made.  The claims rate per 10,000 of the population was 4073. In total, 104,045 days of productivity were lost. Those statistics are up very slightly from 2011/12 when 19,030 claims totalled a pay-out of $22,859,252.

In Tasman, where fruit growers, carpenters, joiners and livestock producers made the most work-related claims, a total of $26,021,239 was paid out in 2012/13. The number of claims was 18,044 and the claims rate per 10,000 of the population was just 3712. Those statistics were up from the 17,646 claims made the year prior, when $25,743,521 was paid out.

When comparing the type of injuries reported in both Nelson and Tasman, ACC says one of the major factors is the population demographic. Nelson, with an older population, exceeds the national average injury rate in two areas; falls and water sport related injuries, while Tasman exceeds the national average in work and water sport related injuries.