Car crash couple sue over TV show

Television New Zealand is being sued for $115,000 by car-crash victims who were horrified to watch their ordeal being replayed on a "reality" TV show.

Gary Robert Andrews and his wife Penny had to be prised by firefighters from their car after it crashed into a paddock off the Southern Motorway on December 21, 2002.

The Auckland couple were filmed by Greenstone Pictures while trapped in the vehicle and as they were being removed, at which point Mr Andrews was unconscious and his wife was trying to speak to him.

The couple have told the High Court that their permission to be filmed was neither sought nor obtained, and they had no warning they were to appear on Television One's Firefighters 14 months later.

They are seeking general damages of $100,000 and a punitive sum of $15,000.

The case is likely to be watched closely in television circles because of its potential impact on reality TV shows, which have mushroomed in recent years.

The Andrews say friends and relatives recognised them, despite an attempt by the producers to mask their faces electronically. They were at a party when they realised Mrs Andrews' desperate verbal efforts to reach through to her husband at the crash scene were being broadcast.

It is understood he suffered a broken neck, which has since mended.

According to a preliminary decision of Justice Mark Cooper, the Andrews allege that the broadcast was highly offensive to them, and would be to an objective and reasonable person.

Their statement of claim also alleges that Mrs Andrews was dazed and in shock from severe trauma, and was unaware of being filmed or having her conversation recorded.

A trial date has yet to be set, but Justice Cooper has rejected an application by TVNZ for various "preliminary" issues to be dealt with in the meantime, including whether the couple had a reasonable expectation of privacy.

He ruled that various questions listed by the broadcaster, such as whether the crash victims were identifiable to the public, were likely to require further evidence and should be dealt with at a full trial.

The Andrews' lawyer, Brian Henry, said last night that the case was a landmark one.

TVNZ did not want to discuss the case yesterday or its policies on protecting the identity of non-consenting film subjects, but said it would defend itself "most vigorously".