Kiwibank executive's emails over kitchen dispute prompts internal bank investigation

Wednesday, 10 July 2019

Phillip Della Barca prompted a Kiwibank internal investigation after a senior executive became involved in a dispute he had with a kitchen company.

Kiwibank's chief risk officer left the bank six months after an investigation into emails he sent from his work email address to a Kiwibank customer who was locked in a dispute with his wife's kitchen company.

But though Malcolm Bruce acknowledged he had made a mistake in sending the emails from his work email, he said his departure in June from Kiwibank was not related to the emails, or the internal bank investigation that followed.

Bruce admitted he sent two emails from his work email address to Phillip Della Barca, who was trying to get his deposit back from a kitchen company run by Bruce's wife Rochelle Jackson.

When the relationship between Kitchen Elements and Della Barca broke down in October, with each blaming the other, Della Barca offered to forego $3000 of his $27,000 deposit to part ways amicably.

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The kitchen had not been started, but the company wanted $7000 for the planning and preparation work it had done, but believed that it underestimated the costs it had incurred and said unless Della Barca accepted, it would keep $10,000 and Della Barca would have to seek the money back by going to court.

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Kiwibank customer Della Barca, who was trying to complete a new home in the Wellington suburb of Eastbourne, was surprised when senior bank executive Bruce then emailed him to encourage him to accept Kitchen Elements' $7000 demand.

'If you believe that the settlement is unfair, I recommend that you file a claim with the Small Claims Tribunal,' Bruce said in the email.

Della Barca, who was not aware Bruce was Jackson's husband, felt the email from a senior executive at the bank which held his personal financial records was intimidating.

He emailed Bruce back saying Kitchen Elements had no legal grounds to keep his money, and asked in what capacity Bruce was representing Kitchen Elements.

Bruce responded, also from his Kiwibank email address, and said he was Jackson's husband, but again urged Della Barca to accept a $7000 deduction from his deposit, or seek a court ruling.

'What I would ask you is whether you are willing to invest the legal fees, to run the risk of a court process which as we both know can be uncertain,' Bruce said in the email.

Bruce told Stuff he had sent the 'politely-worded' emails at the request of his wife as she was struggling in communications with Della Barca.

He said he was doing some Kiwibank work at the time at the time, and sent the email from his work email, which he had open at the time.

'I acknowledged it was a mistake, and I was given advice not to use personal email, which was absolutely correct. I genuinely made a mistake.'

He said he had apologised to Della Barca, and his departure from the bank was entirely unrelated.

Kiwibank chief executive Steve Jurkovich told Della Barca the bank did not condone the use by employees of the bank's systems or resources to conduct their personal business.

'I'd been in that role for about four and half year, and to be honest I'm just looking for a new challenge in my life,' Bruce said.

Kiwibank held an internal investigation into Bruce's actions after Della Barca wrote directly to Kiwibank chief executive Steve Jurkovich and chair Susan Macken.

In late December, Jurkovich wrote to Della Barca.

'Kiwibank has now carried out a preliminary investigation and can confirm the following: I can assure you that Kiwibank did not have any knowledge of or involvement in Mr Bruce's communications with you, until after the events occurred. Mr Bruce was acting in his private capacity, albeit using our email system, and not under Kiwibank's delegated authority.'

'Kiwibank will address with Mr Bruce his use of his Kiwibank email address to conduct personal business.'

Jurkovich said he could not share details of the employment process going on with Bruce as it was 'a private employment matter between Kiwibank and Mr Bruce'.

'Kiwibank would nevertheless like to assure you that we do not condone the use by our employees of our systems or resources to conduct their personal business. The concerns you raised are a good example of the reasons why, and we are confident that there will not be a repeat by Mr Bruce.'

All Kiwibank staff would be reminded not to use Kiwibank email addresses to conduct private business, Jurkovich said.

Della Barca also made a complaint to the police.

Jackson said she was invited into Wellington Central Police station, and at the request of the police, she agreed to put the $10,000 into a trust account until the Disputes Tribunal claim was heard.

At the tribunal in February, the parties agreed Kitchen Elements would retain $4000 of Della Barca's deposit.

Kiwibank spokeswoman Lisa-Marie Richan said Bruce left the bank on June 30.

'In 2018 Mr Della Barca did raise a concern in relation to the Chief Risk Officer using a Kiwibank email address for private correspondence and this was dealt with at the time,' she said.

'If there is a civil matter between the individuals concerned, as you’d expect Kiwibank has no view or comments on those matters.'