Wairarapa quad crash kills teen

The Life Flight Westpac Rescue Helicopter was scrambled but the man died at the scene. PHOTO/FILE

A young man has died while riding a quad bike on a Hinakura farm over the weekend.

Masterton Senior Sergeant Gordon Crawley said an 18-year-old Hutt Valley man had died on Saturday night after crashing his quad bike on a farm.

The man, whose name has yet to be released, was riding with a group of other young men when the crash happened, Mr Crawley said.

"A couple of young fellows were riding on a farm track on quad bikes and he's gone down an about 100m bank into a really steep ravine or gully and died."

Life Flight's Westpac Rescue Helicopter was dispatched but the man died at the scene.

It was not known whether he was wearing a helmet at the time of the crash.

The police Serious Crash Unit were investigating and a post mortem would be conducted, Mr Crawley said.

Last year, 6-year-old Abigail Jane Schmal-Singleton of Stokes Valley was killed in a quad bike crash after the children's quad bike she was riding hit a fence at the Jayden Kilmister memorial trail bike ride at Te Ore Ore Bideford Rd.

In April 2015, Carterton farmer Hamish McLennan died after he lost control of his quad bike on the bank of an open drain, toppled in and became trapped under the vehicle.

In 2010, Coroner Ian Smith called for minimum safety requirements on quad bikes, saying he was "at his wit's end" with Kiwi attitudes to quad bike safety.

At an inquest into the death of Filipino beekeeper Jody Santos, who was killed while riding a quad bike in 2008, Mr Smith questioned what it would take to get lifesaving equipment installed on quad bikes. He called for them to have full or partial roll bars, lap belts and the compulsory safety helmets.

In 2015, seven people were killed in agricultural quad bike crashes, according to Worksafe figures for the year until November.