Crown insurer Southern Response met with private investigator, police over claimant

Wednesday, 7 March 2018

Southern Response claimant Cam Preston had some things to say to former Southern Response chief executive Peter Rose during a protest in 2013.

Southern Response hired a private investigator and contacted police over concerns about a disgruntled earthquake insurance claimant they feared could trigger another 'Ashburton Winz incident', documents obtained by Stuff show.

The office of then Earthquake Recovery Minister Gerry Brownlee was also briefed on the matter.

Police visited Preston's home over daily emails sent to his insurer.

The State Services Commission (SSC) announced on Wednesday it was launching an inquiry into Southern Response, the Crown-owned claims management company, to look at whether its 'use of a security contractor' breached integrity and standards.

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'The material I have seen raises questions around compliance with standards of integrity and conduct for state servants,' State Services Commissioner Peter Hughes said.

'Those questions need to be answered.'

Stuff understands the SSC inquiry will cover the use of private investigators to spy on earthquake claimants.

The meeting took place in July 2015, and was followed by a police visit to insurance critic and accountant Cameron Preston five days later. Preston has been vocal about his frustrations with the Earthquake Commission (EQC) and insurers and was part of a class action over claims.

Preston said on Wednesday that Southern Response had drummed up security concerns as an excuse to intimidate him.

'They really went after me and tried to portray me as some sort of loony. The only threat I posed was that I was organising people and involved in a class action.

'If you can't go to a protest meeting and ask questions, what sort of country do we live in?'

He said he understood others involved in organising the class action were also targeted by Southern Response.

He said the inquiry followed his approaches to the Ombudsman and Privacy Commissioner. He welcomed it, as long as it did not 'waste' taxpayers' money, and said it 'should set the record straight'.

The 2015 meeting was attended by Southern Response staff, Christchurch police Sergeant Greg Hume and private investigator Gavin Clark, who '[had] been providing advice on security issues'.

Hume's summary of the meeting, which appears in Preston's police file, showed Southern Response's then communications manager Linda Falwasser 'reports intimidation to the firm and its staff by dissatisfied customer Cameron Preston'.

The summary concluded: 'Falwasser's concerns are a repeat Ashburton Winz incident', referencing the killing of two Work and Income staff in the Canterbury town in 2014.

Hume noted in the file that when visited by police Preston appeared 'to be very articulate and spoke freely. There was no obvious anger in his words, merely frustration at a lack of progress by Southern Response'.

On the same day, Falwasser emailed an adviser to Brownlee with an update, saying the company had been advised to contact police given 'the issue' had the 'potential to escalate'.

Southern Response chairman Ross Butler said on Wednesday the company engaged a contractor in 2014 in response to 'an escalating level of threatening and aggressive behaviour and communications from customers towards staff, the chief executive, directors and the chairman'.

'Given the environment the company was operating in at the time, and conscious of its obligations to ensure the safety of its staff, Southern Response sought external assistance for a security review.'

The contractor was asked to provide 'independent security advice' and assess the risk to the safety of employees and directors.

'The health, safety and wellbeing of personnel, customers and workers involved on the Southern Response project are of prime importance,' Butler said.

The company has a rocky history in post-earthquake Christchurch. It was the target of protests in 2013 and a 'Southern No Response' campaign criticising slow or reduced settlements. Police and security guards attended the company's annual meeting in 2014.

Clark is a director of Auckland-based security firm Thompson and Clark Investigations, which made headlines last year for alleged surveillance of environmental protesters on behalf of state owned-mining company Solid Energy.