A car has struck a power pole at a busy intersection in Tauranga.
Emergency services were called to the crash at 6.50am, after reports that a vehicle had collided with a power pole at the intersection of Fraser St and Courtney Rd.
There have been no reports of injuries, although the power pole was left damaged and is understood to be “on a lean”, police said.
A contractor is assessing the pole’s stability.
Powerco reported an unplanned outage affecting one property following the crash.
Power went off at 7.28am, with restoration estimated by 11.30am.
A field crew is at the site while investigations continue.
4 comments
Out of interest...
Posted on 04-06-2026 08:33 | By fair game
Who pays for these repairs if the driver is at fault?
power poles
Posted on 04-06-2026 09:33 | By terminal
their insurance co, if they have one ??? or themselves joke,
Given...
Posted on 08-06-2026 15:37 | By morepork
... that the pole is a static target and the vehicle is moving, and supposed to be doing so in a controlled manner, it's hard to make a case for the driver NOT to be at fault.
It is reasonable to expect third party insurance to cover this, but because it isn't mandatory in NZ (unlike Europe and the UK...), it is far more likely that The supply company or Council will pick up the costs.
Guess where THEY get the money from?
Insurance
Posted on 09-06-2026 15:32 | By Yadick
As morepork aptly states, car insurance isn't mandatory in New Zealand. In my opinion it should be compulsory to have third party absolute minimum and tag it onto registration. On the other hand Registration is compulsory and how many unregistered vehicles do we see being driven by self-entitled drivers.
I had a friend that ran into a wooden power pole whilst changing a tape (yes, a tape). He received a bill of $3000.00 for a replacement post. That was a few decades (plus more) ago now, so I'd hate to think what they cost today although the one that was hit in this case was a metal lamp post.
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