LGOIMA vehicle (DCC) : Hyundai Santa Fe (2016) written off Jan 2017

Received.

From: Sandy Graham [DCC General Manager Strategy and Governance]
Sent: Monday, 24 April 2017 5:03 p.m.
To: Elizabeth Kerr
Cc: [DCC Governance Support]
Subject: RE: Elizabeth Kerr Local Government Official Information request – 584807

Dear Elizabeth

Please see below a response to your LGOIMA request re Mayoral vehicles.

Request details:
LGOIMA request re mayoral vehicle (DCC)

1. I understand there is a DCC vehicle dedicated for use by the Mayor of Dunedin, is this correct? If so, is the vehicle owned by DCC, or is it leased?
Yes. It is owned by DCC

2. What are the terms and conditions of the Mayor’s use of this vehicle? (including DCC insurance cover in regards to who may drive the vehicle and for what purpose(s) to retain the cover)
The Mayor pays for full private use of the vehicle as per the determination set out by the independent Remuneration Authority. The insurance cover for the mayoral vehicle is as for all other fleet vehicles. Any authorised driver is covered.

3. What is the make, model, colour, year and registration of the mayoral vehicle? Please state for all vehicles designated for mayoral use in the period October 2010 to April 2017, if any.
Please see the attached spreadsheet. I have not provided registration plate details and these are withheld to protect the privacy of natural persons pursuant to section 7(2)(a) of LGOIMA.

4. What has been the annual mileage clocked for the mayoral vehicle on official business in the period October 2010 to April 2017?
Annual mileage is not recorded and so the information requested does not exist.

5. Does the mayor also retain the vehicle for his own casual use when not on official business? If so, is this mileage logged separately and what has been that annual mileage clocked in the period October 2010 to April 2017? Or please supply the annual mileage clocked for all use of the vehicle in the period October 2010 to April 2017?
The Mayor pays for full private use of the vehicle as per the determination set out by the independent Remuneration Authority. No records of annual mileage are kept.

6. Designated driver(s). Besides the mayor, are there other dedicated drivers specified for this vehicle? (see 2. above). Please identify the drivers – if for privacy reasons names cannot be supplied, state by position or role to include council staff, elected council representatives (councillors), or the mayor’s family.
The vehicle is able to be driven by any authorised driver.

7. See 4. above. How does this mileage compare with the annual mileage recorded for a mayoral vehicle (if any) used by previous mayors, where this is known? For example, for Richard Walls, Sukhi Turner and Peter Chin.
No mileage records are held.

8. In the period October 2010 to April 2017, have any vehicles assigned for mayoral use been badly damaged or written off? Please provide vehicle identification (make/model/colour/year/registration), date of vehicle crash or incident, crash site or incident location; and, where relevant identify whether this was an injury/serious injury/non injury crash (cross out whichever does not apply).
Yes. A Hyundai Santa Fe was written off in Jan 2017 following an accident involving serious injury near Roxburgh.

9. See 8. above. What was the official cause of each vehicle crash or incident as determined for DCC’s insurance claim (if any); and or as claimed in the official CAS report* involving a DCC vehicle, a copy of which may be held on DCC files? *The NZ Transport Agency manages the Crash Analysis System (CAS) – New Zealand’s primary tool for capturing information on where, when and how road crashes occur. CAS is used by a range of organisations all with the broad aim of improving road safety. https://www.nzta.govt.nz/safety/safety-resources/crash-analysis-system/
The insurers did not identify a cause of the accident.

10. See 6. above. Was the mayor or another officially designated driver identified for each vehicle crash or incident listed at 8. above?
Yes.

11. How recently was the mayoral vehicle replaced following a vehicle write-off? Did DCC’s insurance cover and budgets meet the full cost of vehicle replacement and other associated costs such as accident victim transfer to hospital? Please itemise all costs to DCC.
Refer to the attached spreadsheet. DCC received a full insurance pay-out.

12. Further to 3. above, please confirm the make, model, colour, year and registration number of the present mayoral vehicle and its date of purchase or commencement of lease by DCC. Please respond by email within 20 working days. Thanks.
Refer to the attached spreadsheet. I have not provided registration plate details and these are withheld to protect the privacy of natural persons pursuant to section 7(2)(a) of LGOIMA.

Given I have withheld information, you are entitled to a review of the decision by the Office of the Ombudsman.
I have cc’ed [DCC Governance Support] on the response for record keeping purposes.

Sandy [Graham]

Attachment: LGOIMA request vehicles (Excel spreadsheet)

[screenshot – click to enlarge]

Similar model ?

From: [DCC Governance Support]
Sent: Wednesday, 19 April 2017 9:28 a.m.
To: Elizabeth Kerr
Subject: Acknowledgement of request

19-Apr-2017

Elizabeth Kerr

Dear Ms Kerr,

Official information request for: 584807, KERR, MAYORAL VEHICLE

Reference Number: 306621

I am writing to acknowledge receipt of your official information request dated 18-April-2017 for 584807, KERR, MAYORAL VEHICLE

We received your request on 18-April-2017. We will endeavour to respond to your request as soon as possible and in any event no later than 17-May-2017, being 20 working days after the day your request was received. If we are unable to respond to your request by then, we will notify you of an extension of that timeframe.

Your request is being handled by Sandy Graham. If you have any queries, please feel free to contact her on 03 477 4000. If any additional factors come to light which are relevant to your request, please do not hesitate to contact us so that these can be taken into account.

Yours sincerely

Governance Support Officer
Dunedin City Council

[*My LGOIMA request is dated 16 April 2017]

From: officialinformation@dcc.govt.nz
Sent: Sunday, 16 April 2017 1:19 p.m.
To: Elizabeth Kerr
Subject: Confirmation of receipt of LGOIMA request – 584807

Dear Elizabeth

I am writing to acknowledge receipt of your official information request dated 16 Apr 2017 1:19pm
We support public access to official information. Our obligation under the Local Government Official Information Act 1987 (the Act) is to provide you the information requested as soon as reasonably practicable unless there is a good reason for withholding it.

We will process information requests as below:

• We will let you know as soon as we can (and in any case within 20 working days) whether your request will be granted or declined, and if the request is declined why we have declined it.
• In some cases it may be necessary for our decision to be made after 20 working days. When this occurs we will advise you the anticipated delivery date together with the reason why it is necessary to extend that time within the 20 working days.
• If your request is complex or requires a large amount of collation and research, we may contact you with a view to either refining your request or discussing the possibility of charging for aspects of your request in line with the DCC charging policy.
• If we decide to release the information, we aim to provide it at the same time as we give our decision. If this is not possible we will provide the information as soon as reasonably practicable.

If you need to contact us about your request, please email officialinformation@dcc.govt.nz or call 03 477 4000. Please quote reference number: 584807

The timeliness of our decisions and the reasons for them are reviewable by the Office of the Ombudsman. You can view the Ombudsman’s guidelines for the processing of information requests at http://www.ombudsman.parliament.nz or by calling freephone: 0800 802 602.

Yours sincerely,

Official Information Request Service

Below are the details of the request

Your request:

LGOIMA request re mayoral vehicle (DCC)

1. I understand there is a DCC vehicle dedicated for use by the Mayor of Dunedin, is this correct? If so, is the vehicle owned by DCC, or is it leased?

2. What are the terms and conditions of the Mayor’s use of this vehicle? (including DCC insurance cover in regards to who may drive the vehicle and for what purpose(s) to retain the cover)

3. What is the make, model, colour, year and registration of the mayoral vehicle? Please state for all vehicles designated for mayoral use in the period October 2010 to April 2017, if any.

4. What has been the annual mileage clocked for the mayoral vehicle on official business in the period October 2010 to April 2017?

5. Does the mayor also retain the vehicle for his own casual use when not on official business? If so, is this mileage logged separately and what has been that annual mileage clocked in the period October 2010 to April 2017? Or please supply the annual mileage clocked for all use of the vehicle in the period October 2010 to April 2017?

6. Designated driver(s). Besides the mayor, are there other dedicated drivers specified for this vehicle? (see 2. above). Please identify the drivers – if for privacy reasons names cannot be supplied, state by position or role to include council staff, elected council representatives (councillors), or the mayor’s family.

7. See 4. above. How does this mileage compare with the annual mileage recorded for a mayoral vehicle (if any) used by previous mayors, where this is known? For example, for Richard Walls, Sukhi Turner and Peter Chin.

8. In the period October 2010 to April 2017, have any vehicles assigned for mayoral use been badly damaged or written off? Please provide vehicle identification (make/model/colour/year/registration), date of vehicle crash or incident, crash site or incident location; and, where relevant identify whether this was an injury/serious injury/non injury crash (cross out whichever does not apply).

9. See 8. above. What was the official cause of each vehicle crash or incident as determined for DCC’s insurance claim (if any); and or as claimed in the official CAS report* involving a DCC vehicle, a copy of which may be held on DCC files?

*The NZ Transport Agency manages the Crash Analysis System (CAS) – New Zealand’s primary tool for capturing information on where, when and how road crashes occur. CAS is used by a range of organisations all with the broad aim of improving road safety. https://www.nzta.govt.nz/safety/safety-resources/crash-analysis-system/

10. See 6. above. Was the mayor or another officially designated driver identified for each vehicle crash or incident listed at 8. above?

11. How recently was the mayoral vehicle replaced following a vehicle write-off? Did DCC’s insurance cover and budgets meet the full cost of vehicle replacement and other associated costs such as accident victim transfer to hospital? Please itemise all costs to DCC.

12. Further to 3. above, please confirm the make, model, colour, year and registration number of the present mayoral vehicle and its date of purchase or commencement of lease by DCC.

Please respond by email within 20 working days. Thanks.

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Posted by Elizabeth Kerr

This post is offered in the public interest.

*Image: hyundaiusa.com – 2016 Hyundai Santa Fe Sport

21 Comments

Filed under DCC, Democracy, Dunedin, Economics, Education, Finance, Health & Safety, New Zealand, People, Politics, Property, Public interest, Transportation

21 responses to “LGOIMA vehicle (DCC) : Hyundai Santa Fe (2016) written off Jan 2017

  1. You may have got an answer, Elizabeth, but I can’t make any sense out of those figures on the spreadsheet. They seem to be incomplete, not clearly explained and show no pattern at all.

    {The formal response with spreadsheet says quite a lot. -Eds}

  2. russandbev

    Looks to me like a 2016 brand new SUV written off within 5 days, a replacement got within a day costing $60k which lasted 2 1/2 months, then another SUV purchased but a year later costing another $56k. No mileage recorded on anything so how can the Mayor make payment for his private use? Guessing that the first write off was on the way to Christmas holidays at Tarras….the whole thing seems to have been kept under large Christmas wrapping.

    • Hype O'Thermia

      I’m sure that within “social media” there are people who know people who saw, rescued, towed, assessed, wrecked, and sold for parts……

  3. Phil

    2017: $2187 for tyres. No doubt climate change is on the way, with all that rubber in the atmosphere.

    • russandbev

      Maybe the tyres supplied to the new vehicles were not suitable for their intended use? I mean, maybe the terrain getting in and around the streets of Dunedin is beyond what the manufacturer could cope with.

  4. KolA

    So “an accident involving serious injury” with “mayor or another officially designated driver” in main roles? Am I getting it right? Why it’s not (wasn’t) on the front pages everywhere?

  5. Elizabeth

    Maybe the leader of one of the world’s ‘great small cities’ (which one, you ask, lower case) should be required to have a marked vehicle, ah, for promotional purposes. And that only he is to drive the (new) Hyundai, apart from council service staff – not family – it’s not like the mayor’s partner seeks the civic limelight a la Melania, Michelle, Bronagh or Mary…. Also, when on official business at DCC the leader should be required to park immediately outside the Civic Centre on Moray Place, at the DCC garage entry, as a sign he is ‘in residence’.

    Why only today, a Hyundai SUV…. *click

    More on the Hyundai Santa Fe SUV
    http://www.hyundai.co.nz/new-cars/suv/santa-fe/

    • Hype O'Thermia

      Seven seat SUV? Big family at home eh. Or moonlighting as Uber driver?
      And it’s fossil fuel powered, O the shock! (Diesel – see RUC charges on the spreadsheet for Hyundai Santa Fe No.1 and No.2 and the Peugeot.)

  6. Hype O'Thermia

    Charges for light petrol and diesel vehicles | Ministry of Transport
    http://www.transport.govt.nz/land/roadusercharges/light-petrol-vs-diesel/

    The cost of a licence varies, depending on the type of vehicle and its weight. The current cost for a road user charges licence for light diesel vehicles (weighing 3.5 tonnes or less) is $62 per 1,000 kilometres. Mar 23, 2017

    • Elizabeth

      Given the leader cycles to work and home again to the peninsula (some days…), how does a Dunedin-based person run up the mileage suggested by the Peugeot’s RUC total ?

      • Hype O'Thermia

        Is this question the reason for coyness about keeping / revealing mileage?
        Is it still advisable to take new vehicles in for oil change, then full servicing after x-number of kilometres?
        If so I wonder who’s responsible for checking odometer so that maintenance can be carried out at the right time.

  7. A little historical background on mayoral cars. And, of course, Tim Shadbolt was known for using his to pull his concrete mixer. But there is a serious issue here of environmentalists walking their talk. And that goes for just not mayoral cars but local bodies’ whole fleet. Set us all a good example! I believe Green Party Leader James Shaw refuses to own a car at all.
    http://www.stuff.co.nz/southland-times/news/320778/Mayor-Tim-defends-new-car-preference

  8. russandbev

    Strange thing, but I can see no ODT record of a serious crash involving injury in December 2016/January 2017 or thereabouts. No record of it at all other than this totalling of the mayoral car care of the supplied spreadsheet. Strange. Is this another example of open and transparent governance?

    • Elizabeth

      For the protection of the natural personage (driver). The leader was not bandaged or crippled, so who was it.

  9. Elizabeth

    A couple of days ago I checked these and other news listings for the serious injury car crash near Roxburgh in late December 2016:

    [excerpt]
    “Three serious road crashes – including one fatality – occurred in the Cromwell district during the official holiday period from 4pm on December 23, 2016 to 6am on Wednesday, January 4, and two more fatalities have occurred on the Crown Range Rd and near Alexandra since then.
    A man was killed when his motorcycle hit a fence in Cromwell on December 29, four people were injured when a vehicle rolled near Tarras on January 1, and two people were lucky to escape injury when a ute rear-ended a car in the Cromwell Gorge the same day.”
    http://www.thenews.co.nz/news/fatal-accidents-prompt-warning/

    [not related] http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/88071677/car-containing-five-people-rolls-in-central-otago

    No mention in NZ Herald’s Road Accidents Archive for New Zealand at:
    http://www.nzherald.co.nz/road-accidents/news/archive.cfm?c_id=663

    NZTA will eventually map it.

    More information is gradually coming to hand. Otago is a small place.
    Fishing poles always work.

  10. Calvin Oaten

    But a major city mayor? Not even newsworthy when his motor vehicle is totalled in a vehicle crash. This to not even rate a line in the ODT is amazing. Someone might be pulling a few strings here in order to get it all suppressed. Hmmmm….? Nice Hyundai SUV though.

    {The information request pertained to the circumstances of a single vehicle crash. -Eds}

  11. KolA

    OK plate numbers are so sensitive, but where are the VIN’s ?
    Or “Accident nobody heard about + two cars of same make model” equals “No accident + one car + [deleted…] but there’s no corruption in New Zealand… oh wait.

    {*Vehicle Identification Number. Moderated, actionable. -Eds}

  12. Hype O'Thermia

    All that secrecy! Could it be that the unnamed driver of the unidentified vehicle is No 5(a) of the Five Eyes that secretly arrived – or did they – in Queenstown?
    That would explain the need for a 7-seater. All those security guys in dark glasses.

  13. Anonymous

    So who normally drives the 2011 Peugeot 508 GT?
    I’m guessing the Chief Executive.
    2011 would have been new for Paul Orders in that case, then Sue?

  14. Elizabeth

    The DCC response to my question 8. at the post heading this thread states that the 2016 Hyundai Santa Fe SUV was written off in January 2017 – presumably following a decision by the DCC’s insurance company. The DCC spreadsheet, however, tends to indicate the serious injury crash occurred between Christmas and New Year, on or about 28 December 2016.

    A source in Central Otago was able to give more information about the cause and circumstances of the crash – including who was driving, and who was following in another vehicle. Otago is a small place.

  15. Hype O'Thermia

    I wonder if this information will end up on another site, twitter or facebook for instance or an offshore site such as Lauda Finem.

    Comments are now closed. Further information can be obtained via official information (OIA) requests to emergency services or NZTA.
    Site Admin.