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Case Reports - Civil Law Discrimination win for man with schizophrenia Recently we acted for a client, Mr E, at the Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission (HREOC) against NRMA. Our client, Mr E, is 37 years old and was first diagnosed with schizophrenia at the age of 17. His medical condition has prevented him from finishing his secondary education and has made it difficult for him to hold a permanent job. His mental illness also has the effect of interfering with his perception of reality. He has been on the disability support pension for over 10 years. He lives with his parents and his father had always managed his financial affairs. His father passed away in 1998. In June 1996, our client had entered into a credit contract with Esanda Finance for the purchase of a motor vehicle. The vehicle was comprehensively insured with NRMA. Following the death of his father, our client fell into arrears on the contract and the car was subsequently repossessed. Following the repossession, Mr E, because of his mental illness, which is clearly a disability, formed the irrational view that his car was stolen and he continues to believe this, notwithstanding the contrary. He reported the car as stolen to the police and also lodged a claim for theft insurance with NRMA. Having investigated the claim, NRMA concluded that Mr E had not “told the truth about the circumstances giving rise to the claim” and informed Mr E that the insurance policy would be consequently cancelled. More significantly however, NRMA advised Mr E that they were ”not prepared to offer any type of insurance cover to him in the future.” A disability discrimination complaint was then made. In settling the claim, NRMA accepted that the actions of Mr E were innocent and that he was not attempting to commit fraud. They agreed to accept any future policies from Mr E and his original claim for theft was reclassified as cancelled and not refused. Joy Boulos Civil Litigation |
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