Botched jobs provide majority of work for tattooist

The cost to ACC for tattoo-related injuries has hit a three-year low in Rotorua.

Rotorua tattoo studio manager Kelly Buchanan says her studio works on too many cover-ups of badly done tattoos.

"That is most of our work, frustratingly so."

Ms Buchanan said she had seen plenty of infections and poor workmanship at her Globus Gallery studio as a result of unqualified tattooists.

The cost to ACC for tattoo-related injuries hit a three-year low in Rotorua in 2013. Just $30 was claimed, compared with more than $100 the previous two years.

Across the country, ink enthusiasts hoping to save a buck cost the public thousands each year for botched tattoos.

ACC received 304 claims relating to tattoos across the country in 2013 at a cost of almost $46,000.

The most common injuries were lacerations, punctures or stings and most people listed "home" as the accident scene on their claim form.

The amount claimed by an individual varied depending on the severity of their injury, said ACC media advisor Suzanne Muth.

"It depends on how much medical treatment they need to receive," she said.

"If one person had a really bad reaction it could mean a lot of trips to the doctor for check-ups."

Ms Muth said people could not use ACC to have an unsightly tattoo covered, the claim has to be for an injury. People in need of tattoo removal to re-enter the workforce could claim up to $1500 a year in the Work and Income Transition to Work scheme.

A Work and Income spokesperson said only a small number of people used the scheme for tattoo removal: "Those who access this support do so to try and turn their lives around, and find that having a visible tattoo is preventing them from getting a job."