Water Safety NZ and Coastguard Tautiaki Moana welcome Life Jackets for Children and Young Persons Bill

Water Safety New Zealand and Coastguard jointly welcome yesterday’s first reading of the Life Jackets for Children and Young Persons Bill - and hope the process will open up wider conversations about the need for broader protection and consistent national legislation.

If passed, the Bill, introduced by National MP for Upper Harbour, Cameron Brewer, would require children and young people under the age of 15 to wear lifejackets while on recreational vessels under six metres in length – a move strongly supported by Water Safety New Zealand and the water safety community.

While fully supporting this Bill, Water Safety New Zealand, Coastguard, and other stakeholders have also voiced the need for one clear rule around lifejacket use for all ages, particularly given the number of adult drownings in which no lifejacket was worn.

Acting Chief Executive Gavin Walker says there is urgent need to address longstanding inconsistencies in lifejacket requirements across the country.

“The facts are clear. Lifejackets increase a person’s survivability like nothing else. Our data and insights make it clear, up to 20 lives could be saved every year if everyone on a craft wore a lifejacket. National legislation is a simple, sensible change that will save lives.”

Water Safety New Zealand’s data and insights show a total of 424 people drowned in craft related incidents between 2000 and 2024. Of those, 324 people drowned on a craft and were not wearing a lifejacket.

Coastguard, whose 2,000 plus volunteers respond to thousands of incidents on the water every year, says lifejackets are critical to successful rescue outcomes.

“This Bill is about giving people a fighting chance,” says Coastguard CEO Carl McOnie. “Lifejackets not only increase survival rates - but they also give our volunteers a better chance of reaching people in trouble before it’s too late. We see the consequences of not wearing one far too often.”

In some regions, such as Auckland - where the highest number of drownings occur - wearing a lifejacket is still left to the discretion of the skipper. Different regions have different rules, and that creates confusion. “It’s time for a consistent, nationwide approach,” says Gavin. “Wearing a lifejacket should be as second nature as putting on a seatbelt or bike helmet.”

“We hope this Bill becomes another step toward building a culture where water safety is second nature in Aotearoa,” says Gavin. “One simple action – putting on a lifejacket – can be the difference between life and death.”

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