Motorist who witnessed car swerve off rural Auckland road claims he was verbally abused for calling police

A motorist has recounted a “very weird” encounter on a rural Auckland road after witnessing a car swerve into a ditch, calling the police and then allegedly being subject to verbal abuse by two members of the public.

Dashcam footage of the incident, which occurred on Ararimu Valley Rd in Helensville, was posted to social media on Sunday, showing a vehicle cross the median strip on the rural road before swerving, losing control and plunging into a ditch at speed.

The driver of the vehicle which captured the incident, who wished to remain anonymous, told the Herald it felt like time had completely stopped when he saw the vehicle swerving across the road.

“I basically saw them come hooning down the hill and thought it was a boy racer, then saw them swerving so I slammed on my brakes. Time completely slowed, it stopped.”

The witness said the female driver got some “pretty mean air” and basically “flew into the ditch”, before coming to a stop about 20 metres later.

“I rolled down the window and said, ‘What the f**k was that?’ and she was like, ‘I don’t know’ so I just asked if she was okay, which she was.”

The witness said he had no option but to call the police, so pulled into a nearby driveway and rang 111. While he was on the phone to police, the witness alleged a local pulled in behind him, walked to the driver’s side of the vehicle and said: “What the f**k are you doing here?”

“I explained to him I was calling the police, to which he said, ‘For what? Nobody is hurt, she is fine’ and then I explained that she could’ve easily killed someone and might not realise if she is injured to which he replied, ‘Nah mate you’re a f**king retard, f**k off’.”

The witness proceeded to drive further up the road before performing a U-turn to pass by the site of the incident again. He alleged a woman was standing in the middle of the road with her arms out, flagging him down.

“She said, ‘The f**k you doing calling the police?’ and explained that this kind of thing happened all the time because of a slip in the road. She then told me that I was wasting the police’s time and that I should just piss off.

“The woman that was driving the car came up to my window and the first words that came out of her mouth was, ‘Are you okay?’, so she was lovely,” the witness said.

The witness described the whole ordeal as “very weird” and one that took place on a “very odd street” where everyone seemed to know each other.

“I’m mostly just glad she’s okay, that’s the main thing, but at the same time, whatever the hell this was needs to not happen again ... nobody died this time thankfully.”

He said a police officer later called him and said they were unable to locate the female driver or the vehicle at the scene, but later spoke with her.

A police spokesman confirmed they attended the incident on Ararimu Valley Rd shortly after 12pm on Sunday after a car left the road.

“One person was assessed for injuries but was reportedly uninjured.”

Police were unable to disclose any information about what occurred after the initial incident.

Benjamin Plummer is an Auckland-based reporter who covers breaking news. He has worked for the Herald since 2022.