Tribunal accepts agent’s explanation that he shook woman’s hand to say goodbye after 2017 auction

This article is more than 2 years old

This article is more than 2 years old

A woman who said she was injured when a real estate agent squeezed her hand after a Sydney property auction has lost her bid to be declared a victim of violent crime.

The woman, who cannot be named, unsuccessfully challenged a decision by the commissioner of victims rights who found she was not the victim of any act of violence that could have entitled her to counselling or financial grants.

“I do not find that the agent committed a crime by shaking the applicant’s hand firmly or in some other physically hard or aggressive manner,” concluded John Anthony, a senior member of the New South Wales civil and administrative tribunal.

A senior assessor accepted the agent’s explanation that he shook the woman’s hand to say goodbye after the May 2017 unit auction.

According to the woman, her left hand became swollen and she was in severe pain for several months. She said she went to the doctor, underwent physiotherapy treatments and reported the incident to police in August 2017.

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But she testified that the police report was “grossly inaccurate” and denied telling them she had screamed or shouted as loud as she could when the handshake occurred. She also denied saying she fainted at the scene and an ambulance was called.

The woman further contended that police had no basis to make comments about her possible mental health issues.

In Tuesday’s decision, Anthony referred to her evidence of the agent squeezing her hand tighter and tighter and of “pleading in her heart for him to stop”.

She did not seek medical treatment at the time but said she bandaged her hand and produced a photo of it to the tribunal.

Anthony said no explanation was given for the months-long delay in seeking medical treatment.

“The police report does not in my view support any act of violence in the nature of a deliberate or reckless act that could be classified as an assault,” he said.