Savoni Flood's courier van and Gayne Huirama's motorbike collided in Hamilton in May 2021, with the latter dying at the scene.
Courier driver Sovani Flood slowly pulled onto the road after delivering a parcel and began to cross to the other side.
Coming towards her, in the northbound lane of River Rd, in rural Hamilton, was Gayne Tuitonga Huirama on his motorbike.
Just as Flood, 55, reached the centre line, Huirama spotted the van and slammed on his brakes. But it was too late.
The NZ Post van and the motorbike collided head-on, throwing Huirama onto the road.
The 54-year-old died at the scene.
When questioned by police about the May 2021 crash, Flood said: “I proceeded onto the road, checked my mirror, looked ahead, looked back, and went.
“Before we got to the middle he crashed into us.”
Earlier this year, Flood accepted a sentence indication by Judge Brett Crowley granting her a discharge without conviction and not to disqualify her from driving.
Today at her sentencing, the only issue left to discuss was reparation.
Police prosecutor Sergeant John Taaka said the cost of Huirama’s motorbike was $30,000, and while the insurance company had accepted the claim, it hadn’t confirmed how much it would pay out.
The tragedy had left Huirama’s whānau more than $100,000 out of pocket, including the bike, he said.
Defence counsel Tom Sutcliffe said reparation would be “problematic” as Flood’s husband and business partner suffered a medical event last year meaning she had to take over the business and all of its affairs.
He also raised issues around Huirama’s driving that day including that he had illegal substances in his system and he had been spotted, minutes before the crash, travelling at about 120km/h.
River Rd has an 80km/h speed limit.
“By the time police and Huirama crossed paths, he had reduced his speed to 100km/h or just over.
“Police then turned to pursue ... and a member of the public, who was approaching the T-intersection on River Rd, described the motorcycle as ‘screaming’.
“It’s reasonably inferred that after passing the police vehicle, which clearly had turned on its lights and turned, that Huirama had accelerated away.
“Keeping in mind the speed limit is 80km/h, he would have been travelling at excessive speed.”
Sutcliffe said Huirama had methamphetamine and cannabis in his system, and his bike was not registered or warranted.
“It has to be accepted that Mr Huirama played a significant part in this, beyond the role that Mrs Flood did in terms of the causation of the accident.”
Sutcliffe said his client had been a professional driver for more than 20 years and “not had as much as a citation for her driving”.
She had also attended a restorative justice conference with Huirama’s son.
Sutcliffe said Flood and her husband were “not financially well-off”.
“They’re coping, just like many other New Zealanders ... but their income has been significantly reduced,” after she had to drop working six days a week to look after their business.
Discussing levels of reparation, Sutcliffe cited the case of Kim Blakeney-Williams who was sentenced this month after admitting careless driving causing the death of mother of three Claire “Jeannine” Gwawr Ball, 51, and her mother-in-law Lynda Ball, 76, of Taupō.
Sutcliffe said he had some “early involvement in the case” of Blakeney-Williams, adding their family “are particularly well-off” and Judge Arthur Tompkins ordered she pay $10,000 for each victim.
“It was a family that I know had the capacity to pay more than that. The situation we have here is vastly different than that.”
Judge Crowley said he was “disappointed” to hear Flood not only wanted a discharge without conviction and no disqualification but also not to pay any reparation.
“I don’t find that reasonable.”
He found himself in a position where “there’s no right thing to do in this case”.
“All I can strive to do is the least wrong thing,” he said.
After discussions, Flood said she could pull together $5000 in six weeks.
While Judge Crowley accepted her level of carelessness “was at the lower end”, he ordered her to pay $12,500 in reparation.
The outstanding balance could be paid off over time, he said.
Belinda Feek is an Open Justice reporter based in Waikato. She has worked at NZME for nine years and has been a journalist for 20.
'We lost four days of work since we started work in this area, all because of rain.'