Request for confirmation of debtor’s removal from New Zealand for purposes of insurance claim

Privacy interest outweighed by public interest in enabling pursuit of legal rights and remedies

A motor vehicle finance company sought confirmation in writing from Immigration New Zealand that one of its clients had been deported. The confirmation was needed to enable the company to pursue a debt insurance claim. The request was refused on privacy grounds, and the company complained to the Ombudsman. The Ombudsman concluded that the client’s modest privacy interest was outweighed by the public interest in release of the information to enable the company to pursue its civil right to make an insurance claim.

This case note is published under the authority of the Ombudsmen Rules 1989 opens page in this tab. It sets out an Ombudsman’s view on the facts of a particular case. It should not be taken as establishing any legal precedent that would bind an Ombudsman in future.