Farm Safety Improves Through 'Incremental Gain', Says Birkett
Improving health and safety is about incremental gain rather than a sudden decision, says Leeston farmer and Federated Farmers health and safety spokesman David Birkett.
Feds workplace safety spokesman David Birkett says the number of accidents and deaths related to quad bikes on farms is “just not acceptable”.
Birkett was commenting on a court ruling which convicted farm manager, Dane Hemphill and ordered him to pay reparations of $75,000 to a farmhand who lost his life in a quad bike accident.
WorkSafe New Zealand says the quad bike rollover which killed Ethan Payne, 31, at an Eketahuna dairy farm in November 2022 could have been avoided if Hemphill had kept the vehicle in good working order. Worn brakes, uneven tyre pressures and poor suspension were among the defects found on the ATV that flipped at low speed and killed Payne.
The ATV had been purchased second-hand and had no crush protection device installed.
Birkett told Dairy News that sadly, the industry just doesn’t seem to be getting on top of this problem.
“It’s just not working, with deaths in agriculture seeming to sit around the same numbers every year, it’s just not acceptable.”
Birkett welcomed the discussions that have been taking place between the industry bodies, including Federated Farmers, who have been looking for a solution, with hope it will lead to a Code of Practice for the use of ATV’s and side by sides.
“A Code of Practice was introduced for the forestry industry which seems to be delivering safer outcomes,” says Birkett. “We must have a change of attitude, which in some cases is ‘it won’t happen to me’, while also addressing fatigue in many parts of the farming calendar.”
Hemphill was sentenced at Wellington District Court on 30 April 2025, with charges brought in relation to namely using a Honda TRX420FM2 quad bike at Spring Grove Dairies farm, that did fail to comply with that duty and that failure exposed the workers to a risk of death or serious injury.
He was sentenced for health and safety failures uncovered by a Work- Safe investigation. Being a PCBU (a Person Conducting a Business or Undertaking), Hemphill had a duty to ensure, as far as is reasonably practicable, the health and safety of workers while they are at work in the business or undertaking.
The maximum penalty for the offence is a fine not exceeding $300,000.
“This tragedy should be the lightning rod the agriculture sector needs to up its game on quad bike safety,” says Work- Safe’s central regional manager, Nigel Formosa.
“First and foremost, WorkSafe strongly recommends installing a crush protection device on the back of a quad bike.”
WorkSafe noted that pre-start checks are important, primarily to check tyre pressure and brake function before setting off. Regular servicing in line with the manufacturer’s recommendation is also necessary and should include oil changes and filter replacements.
A checklist can be handy to document the frequency of servicing, what was looked at, and any fixes undertaken. Any issues identified during pre-start checks or servicing should be addressed to avoid further problems or potential hazards.
“We know life is busy for farmers, but there’s no excuse for letting your quad bike maintenance slide, especially when the consequences can be catastrophic. Ideally maintenance checks are done by a mechanic, but if owners are too busy to take quad bikes in for a service, they should arrange for a mobile mechanic to come out to you. The cost is nothing compared to having a preventable death on your conscience,” says Formosa.
Agriculture was New Zealand’s deadliest industry in 2024, with 14 workers killed. Vehicles were the leading cause of death and injury on New Zealand farms, which is why WorkSafe’s new strategy targets about a quarter of their future inspectorate activity towards agriculture.
