This included financial exploitation of the woman and mistreatment of a vulnerable person.
The woman made friends with the man on Facebook and he said he could advocate for her. However, the HDC says the case highlights the importance of having an independent support person. Photo / 123rf
The man and the charity, who were each the subject of two previous similar complaints, will now be referred to the director of proceedings to decide if further action should be taken.
Case highlights plight of vulnerable consumers
Deputy Commissioner Rose Wall said the case involved a vulnerable consumer who had to manage money and contracts, and highlighted the importance of having an independent support person to prevent what happened from occurring.
Wall said in a decision released today that the HDC received a complaint from the woman in April last year, concerned she had been taken advantage of and threatened.
In January 2025, the woman approached the senior worker at the unnamed charity asking for help with her Work and Income New Zealand benefit and allowances.
He explained how he might help, including that he could advocate for changes to her benefit and apply for allowances.
He told the woman the current support she received from CCS Disability Action was “useless” and they “didn’t do a good enough job”.
He encouraged her to cut ties with CCS and her support worker and to sign the charity’s engagement letter, which included a fee schedule.
She signed the letter, despite not fully understanding it and then cut ties with CCS and her support worker.
Wall said that meant she was not supported by an independent support person or support worker when she signed the document.
Offered her a place to live
At the time, the woman was unhoused so the senior charity worker offered her a place to live with him, the HDC said.
She was charged weekly rent of $356, even though the man had said in a letter to Work and Income it was $250 a week.
After moving in she was given two invoices from the charity for about $2600.
The invoices itemised the different advocacy services offered by the man, including meetings and communication with Work and Income regarding the woman’s benefit.
She told the HDC she was concerned because she had not had to pay for advocacy services in the past and did not expect to be charged for these services.
She claimed she was “kicked out” within a week for what the man called a “rule breach”.
She complained to the HDC that the man then demanded she pay the rent up until the end of her three-week notice period.
However, she refused to pay either the rent or the invoices for the advocacy services.
She then contacted CCS, where the invoice had also been sent by the charity to be deducted from a specific personal budget aimed at supporting her to live.
On her advice, CCS did not pay the invoices.
Complaints trigger threats
She then lodged a complaint with Work and Income, HDC and the police, and also went public with a story in the media.
Wall said her actions prompted multiple threats from the man, which were submitted to the HDC.
They included a voicemail telling her she was in “very serious trouble” for publishing something that didn’t need to be published.
He called her an “evil little witch” and said she would “rot”, while screenshots of messages he sent gave her an hour to “withdraw her allegations” otherwise he would press charges for stalking and harassment.
He also threatened the reporter who wrote the story saying she “won’t have a job” and that the pair of them had “f***ed up badly and will pay the price”.
He then sent a warning to the woman telling her to “cease and desist” otherwise he would go to the police and she would be “facing legal action”.
Efforts to engage prompted further threats
Wall said since receiving the complaint, the HDC had tried to engage with the man on numerous occasions, but he declined to respond, citing various reasons including pending court matters and that the woman was “awaiting sentence and a date in the Disputes Tribunal over non-payment of her fees”.
“No more correspondence will be replied to and a formal letter will be sent to HDC,” the man said.
Deputy Commissioner Rose Wall says the concerns raised by the woman were significant because they raised questions about the exploitation and disrespectful treatment of vulnerable consumers. Photo / HDC
“Any attempts to bully us will not be accepted, Because of [Miss A’s] lies we don’t have a client arm [sic], and she is actively trying to destroy our trust,” he said.
He also claimed the charity had engaged a lawyer from whom the HDC could expect to hear.
“Because of [Ms A’s] lies we have been subjected to the most threatening behaviour and told to kill ourselves,” the man told the HDC.
Wall said to date, the HDC had not been contacted by either the police or a lawyer representing the man and the charity.
Neither had the woman been contacted by the police or anyone in the justice system, Wall said.
Concerns ‘significant’
In outlining a list of recommendations, Wall said the concerns raised by the woman were significant because they raised questions about the exploitation and disrespectful treatment of vulnerable consumers.
Wall also said they revealed poor engagement in the complaints process, and a lack of organisational policies and procedures in place to guide advocacy and services provided by the charity.
The Ministry of Social Development said consideration was given to whether an offence had occurred but no charges had been laid in relation to the matters raised.
However, it intended to apply a restriction to the man acting as an agent for other clients.
MSD said from August last year it started work to trace all clients who had appointed the man or the charity as an agent or authorised advocate.
“Steps are underway to notify these clients and recommend alternative support networks,” the ministry told the HDC.
Tracy Neal is a Nelson-based Open Justice reporter at NZME. She was previously RNZ’s regional reporter in Nelson-Marlborough and has covered general news, including court and local government for the Nelson Mail.