Overview
If ACC declines your claim, reduces your entitlements, or makes any other decision you disagree with, you have the right to challenge it. The process has three levels: Review → District Court Appeal → High Court Appeal. Each level has strict time limits.
Step 1: ACC Review (First Level)
Before going to court, you must have your case heard at a Review. This is an independent internal process.
Time Limit
You have 3 months from ACC's decision to apply for a review. You can apply the day you receive the decision letter.
How to Apply
- Write to ACC asking for a review — include your claim number, the decision you disagree with, and your reasons.
- You can use ACC's review application form (available on the ACC website).
- Alternatively, you can email or write to ACC's review unit.
The Review Hearing
- An independent reviewer (not an ACC employee) hears your case.
- The hearing can be in person, by phone, or by video conference.
- You can represent yourself, bring a support person, or use a lawyer/advocate.
- You can submit evidence — medical reports, letters, witness statements.
- ACC also presents its case.
- The reviewer issues a written decision, usually within 4–6 weeks.
Step 2: District Court Appeal (Second Level)
If you disagree with the review decision, you can appeal to the District Court.
Time Limit
You must file your appeal within 28 days of receiving the review decision.
Process
- File a notice of appeal with the District Court (there's a prescribed form).
- The appeal is heard by a District Court Judge.
- It is a full rehearing — new evidence can be submitted.
- Many people use a lawyer or ACC advocate at this stage, but self-representation is possible.
Step 3: High Court Appeal (Third Level)
If you disagree with the District Court decision, you can appeal to the High Court, but only on a question of law — not a re-examination of the facts.
Time Limit
You must file within 28 days of the District Court's decision.
Further appeal to the Court of Appeal and Supreme Court is possible but rare — you need leave (permission) from the court.
Helpful Tips
- Keep copies of all correspondence, medical reports, and emails with ACC.
- Note all deadlines — missing a time limit can lose your right to appeal.
- Seek help early: Community Law Centres, ACC advocates, and some lawyers offer free initial advice.
- Medical evidence is key: Strong support from your GP or specialist greatly increases your chances.
- Don't give up: Many successful appeals happen at the Review stage with proper evidence.
Where to Get Help
- Community Law Centres: Free legal advice across New Zealand
- ACC Advocates: Independent ACC specialists who can represent you at reviews
- Citizens Advice Bureau (CAB): Free advice and help with ACC forms
- Lawyers: Look for those specialising in ACC law
What to Prepare for a Review
The quality of your evidence, not the strength of your argument, usually decides a review. Before the hearing, gather: all ACC decision letters and your claim file (you can request the full file from ACC), a detailed report from your GP or specialist addressing the specific point ACC got wrong, any relevant test results or imaging, and witness statements if the facts of the injury are disputed. The reviewer is independent of ACC and can consider new evidence, so a fresh medical opinion obtained for the review often changes the outcome. You can attend in person, by phone, or by video; bring a support person or advocate. Decisions typically arrive within 4-6 weeks of the hearing. Roughly a third of reviews overturn or vary ACC's decision — the process is genuinely worth using.
Costs, Timeframes and Free Help
Reviews are free, and District Court appeals involve modest filing fees that are often recoverable if you win. The timeframes are strict: 3 months to apply for a review from ACC's decision, 28 days to appeal a review decision to the District Court, and 28 days to appeal a District Court decision to the High Court (questions of law only). If you miss a deadline, apply anyway and explain the delay — late applications are sometimes accepted for good reason, but never rely on it. Free help is available at every stage: Community Law Centres (free legal advice), ACC advocates (independent specialists who represent claimants at reviews), and the Citizens Advice Bureau. Many ACC lawyers offer free initial consultations, and legal aid may be available for court appeals. The system is designed for self-representation — but good help materially improves your odds.
Time Limits and Costs in 2026
ACC disputes run on strict deadlines, and missing one can end your case even if the decision was wrong:
- Apply for a review within 3 months of the date on the decision letter. ACC can accept a late application in limited circumstances, but you should never rely on that.
- The review hearing is run by an independent reviewer (through Fair Way Resolution), not by ACC. You can attend in person, by phone or by video, and bring a support person or advocate.
- The reviewer issues a written decision within 28 days of the hearing. The reviewer can accept your position, uphold ACC's decision, or send the matter back to ACC for reconsideration.
- Appeal to the District Court within 28 days of receiving the reviewer's decision. This deadline is strict — late filing needs leave of the court, granted only in exceptional circumstances.
- Further appeals to the High Court (and then the Court of Appeal) generally carry a further 28-day window but require leave, and are rare outside significant legal questions.
What Actually Wins a Review: The Evidence File
Reviewers decide on the written record, so the file you build before the hearing does most of the work. The decisions that get overturned most often are declined cover, declined weekly compensation, and cut-off social rehabilitation — and all three turn on evidence ACC did not have when it decided:
- An independent medical report from a specialist in your condition, addressing the exact question ACC answered the other way. This is the single highest-value document.
- Your own contemporaneous notes — dated records of pain, function, sleep, and what you could not do, written as things happened rather than reconstructed later.
- Your full ACC file, requested in writing. You are entitled to it, and it shows you which reports the decision relied on and where the gaps are.
- Workplace evidence — job description, task analysis, timesheets, or a statement from a supervisor — for work-related or vocational disputes.
Free Help That Exists
You are not required to have a lawyer at a review. Community Law Centres offer free initial advice on ACC decisions, and ACC advocacy services — some free, some fee-based — will prepare submissions, attend the hearing with you, and manage the paperwork. The application form itself is deliberately simple: the substance lives in the attachments, so attach everything and number it.