Stranded UK tourists head home tomorrow thanks to helpful Kiwis

Alexandra (Sasha) Peterson, 27 and Chris Nevin, 36 stand near where their GPS is transmitting from their stolen phone. Photo / Greg Bowker

A stranded English couple who had all their most valuable possessions stolen are set to head home tomorrow thanks to some helpful Kiwis.

On Boxing Day, Alexandra Petersen, 27, and Chris Nevin, 36, had just finished their month-long campervan tour of New Zealand.

Their hotel on Hobson Street didn't have appropriate parking for the van so they left it across the street in a Wilson carpark.

But when they returned not five minutes later, it had been broken into and all their valuable belongings were gone, including their passports and hard-drive with all their photographs.

However, they managed to use Samsung's website to trace Petersen's phone to the Vincent Street House apartment block. But they don't know exactly which unit it is in so can't go and retrieve it.

The Herald is attempting to contact the building's management.

They also tried to contact the British Consulate to get emergency passports, but were told it doesn't open until January so believed they were stranded.

However, since the Herald broke their story on Wednesday, helpful Kiwis have been in touch and the couple will be on their way back to the UK tomorrow.

A staff member from the consulate in Auckland got in contact and apologised to the couple for being given incorrect information - they were in fact open today.

However, the pair had already booked flights to Wellington so they could visit the British High Commission and get emergency passports.

They've also managed to change their flights from next year to tomorrow.

The Herald was also sent offers of free accommodation for the couple which were passed on but no longer needed.

Petersen thanked everyone for their help and said it made them feel like they weren't alone anymore.

"We can't thank you guys and the kind people of New Zealand enough."

A police spokeswoman said today they would be following their investigation with "extensive enquiries and follow-ups".

She said police would like to remind people to secure any valuables in their vehicles and said sometimes keys were left inside, resulting in the cars being stolen.

"Our advice to anyone with valuables in vehicles is to make sure they are not left unattended or unlocked; at a minimum, make sure keys are removed and vehicles locked if you do have to leave things in your car."

Records of serial numbers and photographs of property also helped police conduct their enquires and recover stolen property.

Petersen said even if they didn't get their belongings back, at the very least they could warn others. She offered some advice:

• Note down all the serial numbers of all electronics
• Photocopy all your important documents, especially your passports
• Back-up all your photos to cloud storage online
• If you're unsure about an area, always have one person in the car.