Church Insurance Reveals $30m Payouts to Vic Abuse Victims

ABC
April 30, 2013

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2013-04-30/church-insurance-reveals-30m-payouts-to-vic-abuse/4661216?section=vic

Catholic Church Insurance has told the Victorian Parliamentary Inquiry into Child Abuse that since the early 1990s it has paid out about 600 abuse claims at a cost of $30 million. It admitted to the inquiry that in the past it may have given advice to the church not to admit anything when dealing with abuse claims.

TIM PALMER: Victoria's parliamentary inquiry into the institutional handling of child sexual abuse today turned its attention to the way the Catholic Church handled claims of abuse made to it.

The church's insurer, Catholic Church Insurance, told the inquiry it has paid out $30 million on 600 claims from victims of child abuse in Victoria. It went on to detail how it refused to indemnify a number of clergymen because the church knew of their propensity to sexually abuse children.

Rachel Carbonell reports.

RACHEL CARBONELL: It's been two days of evidence from orders and organisations of the Catholic Church at the Victorian Parliamentary Inquiry into Child Abuse.

This afternoon it was the Catholic Church Insurance's turn to answer questions from the committee.

Chief executive Peter Rush told the inquiry that it had paid out claims and cost of counselling to about 600 victims, at a cost of $30 million.

Mr Rush told the inquiry he didn't believe the church structured itself to avoid paying out compensation.

PETER RUSH: Much has been said and written about the church's legal structure and its affect on the ability of victims to seek financial compensation.

The trust arrangements of the church were established many decades before allegations of sexual abuse came to the fore, and it is inaccurate to suggest that the church has structured itself in response to this issue.

In our experience, the church has not used its structure to prevent the payment of compensation to victims.

RACHEL CARBONELL: However, under questioning from inquiry committee member Frank McGuire, Peter Rush said that in the past, the insurance company had likely taken a conservative approach to claims and advised the church not to admit liability.

FRANK MCGUIRE: We also had testimony yesterday from Bishop Connors from Ballarat who said, in how the Church was weighing up what it should do, he said, and I'll directly quote him; "We were listening to insurers and lawyers who said 'admit nothing'."

PETER RUSH: Ah, yes. I think that's quite likely, Mr McGuire. You know, in the early 1990s - I wasn't in the company - but in the early 1990s, I'm confident that that would have been a way that we would have advised our clients, quite wrongly. But I'm confident that we would have done it.

RACHEL CARBONELL: Catholic Church Insurance told the inquiry it was also true that it had refused to indemnify certain individuals in the church because the church had knowledge of their propensity to commit child abuse, in particular, serial offender Father Gerald Ridsdale, who has been found guilty and jailed for child sexual abuse offences.

PETER RUSH: In the course of our investigations we ascertained that the bishop in the diocese of Ballarat was aware of the propensity of Ridsdale to offend. The knowledge about Ridsdale was first made to the bishop in about 1975, I understand.

So that means that any matters where the offences occurred after that date would not be covered by either of our policies.

RACHEL CARBONELL: Earlier today the head of the Catholic Church's Victorian abuse claims process gave evidence.

Independent commissioner of the Melbourne response, Peter O'Callaghan, defended himself against criticisms made by Victoria Police in evidence to the inquiry last year.

The police submission alleged that the church didn't refer claims of abuse to police and that alleged offenders had been tipped off about police investigations.

PETER O'CALLAGHAN: We submit that the police submission and action is, in many aspects, plainly wrong and seriously misconceived. I must say that it came as a complete surprise.

RACHEL CARBONELL: Mr O'Callaghan also responded to previous evidence from numerous victims disputing his independence.

PETER O'CALLAGHAN: The fact of being paid by the appointer does not, and it's a grave allegation against me when it's made, destroy my independence. That is, I'm allegedly a cat's paw of my appointer.

Now if I've acted, if there's been a conflict of interest, I haven't perceived it, and I don't think anyone rationally should. But - and what is more, if I'm covering up, if that's what I'm accused of, I've found 97 per cent of complaints which have come to me established. That doesn't appear to be anything other than the exercise of an independent assessment of the matters that have come before me.

TIM PALMER: The independent commissioner of Catholic Church's Melbourne response, Peter O'Callaghan, ending that report by Rachel Carbonell.