MEMBER for Murray Plains Peter Walsh has slammed a government policy that doesn’t allow property owners to receive victims-of-crime compensation.
A Swan Hill landlord, who declined to be interviewed, approached Mr Walsh after her claim was rejected by the Office of Public Prosecutions, which said it would not seek victim redress for things covered by insurance.
Mr Walsh said tenants in the rental property were attacked by two convicted knife-wielding thugs in an aggravated home invasion.
He said the offenders kicked in the front door and further damaged it with their knives during the attack.
“The tenants rightly received compensation through the victims-of-crime process,” Mr Walsh said.
“But my constituent, who is now seriously out of pocket, had her claim – supported by police as fair – rejected by the OPP, which says it will not seek victim redress for things covered by insurance.
“That’s ridiculous and Attorney-General Jaclyn Symes must intervene in this case immediately and then take steps to ensure this discriminatory oversight does not penalise any other victims of crime on this scale.”
Mr Walsh said his constituent was told by the OPP to pursue compensation from the convicted offenders.
“Does the court expect my constituent to approach people who will launch vicious armed assaults like this and demand they repay the damage they caused?” he asked.
“I don’t think so. I’d like to see the Attorney-General’s face if she was the one in the court seeking compensation for her property and that was the only option she was given.
“And within a week of the offenders being convicted, a rock was thrown through the front window of the same house, costing my constituent another excess fee for a glass claim.”
Mr Walsh said crime “wasn’t just about statistics”.
“Crime has a face, and it has victims, and my constituent is one of those,” he said.
“In the end, my constituent has had to go through insurance – pay a $500 excess and get the damage repaired. And now their insurance premium will go up.
“It is pathetic the OPP simply handballs these compensation claims onto the insurance system because then the whole community helps foot the bill for its failures through soaring premiums.
“No crime is victimless, and there is no justice in this justice system, anyone can see that.”
A government spokesperson said the Victims of Crime Assistance Tribunal did not provide financial assistance for lost or damaged property.
“VOCAT does vital work in giving victims of violent crime a voice and a way to get support for what’s happened to them,” the spokesperson told The Guardian.
“Victims of crime are also able to seek compensation through other channels such as private insurance.”
VOCAT provides financial assistance only to victims of violent crime to help with things like counselling and medical expenses, safety-related expenses, loss or damage to clothing worn at the time of the incident, loss of earnings and funeral costs.
People can apply for a court order to make the offender pay for what any lost, damaged or sold property is worth.
The spokesperson said this practice was “long standing”.
Mr Walsh said for the minister to defend a “bad policy” because it was “long standing” was a “pathetic cop-out”.
He said if elected in 2026 The Nationals would make it a priority to review the policy.
“All victims of crime are victims, and in the case of the Swan Hill home invasion, it is the family who owns the property who will end up out of pocket,” Mr Walsh said.
“Through VOCAT, the State Government must adopt a sensible approach to compensation if it is truly going to represent all the people.
“If the system is broken, it needs to be fixed and with this sort of crime getting out of control … the damage bills are rising.”
