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Auckland farmers are being urged to take better care of themselves to prevent quad bike injuries over summer.
New figures from ACC show that as of October 31, there have been 219 quad bike-related injuries in the Auckland region this year, the third-highest nationwide behind Waikato and Canterbury.
That follows 303 injuries last year and 306 in 2019.
ACC says a recent study found 58 per cent of recently injured farmers linked their accidents to stress.
ACC injury prevention programme leader James Whitaker says farmers need to “be a little bit selfish” and keep themselves fresh over summer. This means taking time out, getting enough sleep and eating well.
“It might be tempting for people to take shortcuts sometimes or to push themselves too hard, but if they get injured who gets harmed?” he says.
“There are heaps of flow-on effects for friends, family, workmates and others.”
January is consistently the most dangerous month for quad bike-related injuries.
Mr Whitaker says it is especially important during the holiday period to be aware of children or other family members who are not used to the rural environment.
ACC covers about 23,000 farm-related injury claims in New Zealand every year, including about 2500 quad bike-related injuries.
There have been 74 quad bike-related deaths since 2006. On average, one in five quad bike accidents result in a fatality.
ACC currently provides a subsidy for life-saving crush protection devices for quad bikes.
For further information on the scheme, visit www.acc.co.nz/quadsubsidy
