Police hope a coroner's report into a graphic crash that killed four men near Putorino will spark safer driving habits leading into Christmas.
Lou Wesley, 47, Jack Huata, 64, James Raupita, 42 and Paul Thomas Parata, 48, were killed in the crash in northern Hawke's Bay on June 2.
Coroner Chris Davenport released his report this week into the deaths of the four men from the small rural settlement between Napier and Wairoa.
His report found Mr Huata was driving the car that crashed into a tree on Waikare Rd, and revealed all four men had been drinking and none had been wearing seatbelts.
Three of the four men were thrown from the vehicle after Mr Huata lost control on the unlit, gravel road.
Eastern District Road policing manager, inspector Chris Wallace said the coroner's findings were a timely reminder to everyone about the consequences of driving drunk, not wearing a seatbelt and poor driving.
"Every holiday period we deal with dozens of road crashes, many of which are fatal and cause serious injury to people. We want this year to be different. We want people to take responsibility for their driving and their behaviour on the roads."
Road crashes were still one of the biggest issues facing police despite extensive campaigns to encourage people to be safe. Mr Wallace said 40 per cent of people involved in road crashes in the Eastern district were not wearing a seatbelt.
The Putorino crash also showed how road deaths can hit a community. "The four men lived in the area and had many friends and whanau who were deeply affected by the crash and the resulting fatalities.
"Our region includes a lot of small rural communities, which means we have a diverse network of country roads. A large percentage of our fatalities this year have been on those roads."
The coroner's report was released on the eve of today's drink-drive list of shame, published by Hawke's Bay Today, which includes the circumstances and consequences of 39 people driving under the influence.
Occupations range from mental health workers, engineers, students, pressers and builders. Of these, 25 per cent returned alcohol levels more than twice the legal driving limit - with five drivers recording breath alcohol limits over 1000mcgs.