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Having someone represent you

You can choose to appoint someone as your representative to help you.

Representatives help you work with us

You can appoint a representative for any reason. This may be because you:

  • live overseas
  • have difficulty communicating
  • don't feel comfortable talking with us
  • are unwell.

You can have multiple representatives, and each one can have a different level of responsibility.

What they can do

A representative can only do what you let them. You set this out in detail when you appoint them.

You might want your representative to:

  • help with a single aspect of a claim
  • make enquiries about a claim
  • receive copies of your mail
  • help you complete application forms on your behalf.

A representative can not:

  • receive payments or entitlements on your behalf
  • make decisions or sign documents on your behalf — only you can do that
  • get your mail or other communications on your behalf — they can get a copy sent to them
  • get your records — unless you explicitly approve this.

We don't cover a representatives' expenses.

Power of Attorney

A representative is not someone who has Power of Attorney. Having a Power of Attorney in effect will mean any representation you have will be cancelled. You also cannot appoint a representative.

Appoint a representative

If you only need a representative for one-off support, you can give authorisation to us verbally.

Otherwise, you'll need to appoint a representative by filling out an appointment of representative form. To fill out this form, you'll need to know:

  • if there is a Power of Attorney in place for you
  • your relationship with the representative
  • what you want the representatives' role to be
  • if the representative has written authority from you to access your records.

The representative must prove their identity. This can be done with a valid photo ID, such as a copy of a passport or driver's licence.

Appointment of a representative form [PDF, 751 KB]

Problems with a representative

You can end your representatives' authority at any time. You can do this by either:

  • verbally telling us
  • writing to us.

If you die, the representatives' authority ends.

If you — or someone else — feels your representative has undue influence over you, let us know.

Contact us

If we believe you are being forced to do things, we'll contact the police.