Woman waits on ACC, 9 months after operation leaves her paralysed

Woman waits on ACC, 9 months after operation leaves her paralysed

Last week, we told a story about Te Ariki Dewes, who was left paralysed after she crashed her car in a drink-driving incident in 2009.

She's now trying to convince others not to make the same mistakes she did, but one woman watching this story became very angry.

Karen West had an operation earlier this year and woke up paralysed from the waist down. She has had to learn to walk again, cannot drive or work and her entire life has changed.

Through no fault of her own, she has become completely reliant on the assistance of others, but no assistance has come from ACC yet.

ACC will backdate payments if Ms West's claim is approved, so hearing drink drivers can get ACC straight away makes her angry.

"It doesn't seem fair to me. I said, 'I may as well have been driving drunk and hit a tree.' It's so frustrating to think that would have made it easier to get ACC."

So how long is too long to wait?

Watch the video for the full Story report.