Coastguard's life jacket exchange initiative comes to Hawke's Bay

The Coastguard's Old4New life jacket exchange scheme will be in Hawke's Bay this weekend.

Members of the public can bring in any old, damaged or ill-fitting life jackets to exchange for a new Hutchwilco life jacket at a heavily discounted price.

Lifejackets are discounted from between $30 and $40 and will cost from $69.

Children's life jackets are also available.

On Saturday the Coastguard van will be at Firmans Marine in Napier from 8am to 11am and in Wairoa Town Centre at the River Reserve on Marine Parade from 2pm to 5 pm.

On Sunday the van will visit Lake Waikaremoana for the first time and be next to the I-site from 9am to 2pm.

On Monday the van will make its last Hawke's Bay stop in Mahia and will be at the Mahia Boating and Fishing Club from 9am to noon.

The scheme has been running for five years and is visiting 63 locations throughout New Zealand this summer.

Over the five years over 13,500 life jackets have been upgraded through the scheme.

"We continue to see lifejackets in all shapes and sizes, some even 50 years old, and what a lot of them have in common is that in an emergency they won't keep you safe.

"We need to be out in the community reminding Kiwis that lifejackets don't last a lifetime," Old4New community ambassador Sue Tucker said.

Tucker said it is important to check life jackets annually as their effectiveness is affected by exposure to the elements.

"Even if an old lifejacket looks good to the eye, there is a chance that its effectiveness has reduced with time," she said.