Victim Support
Free, nationwide support for people affected by crime, suicide and traumatic events.
We are here for you, 24/7.
If you or anyone else is in immediate danger, call emergency services on 111.
You may qualify for financial assistance under the Victim Assistance Scheme (VAS) which helps victims of serious crime by contributing to costs related to the crime, the justice process and recovery.
For more information you can contact your Support Worker, call us directly on 0800 842 846 or visit our Financial assistance page.
Visit our Financial assistance page to learn more.
The justice system can be complicated and unfamiliar but knowing what to expect can help. We can help you understand and engage with the justice system, answer any questions you have, and be there for you if you want someone to listen.
We can support you with:
You can call us or visit our How we can help page to find out more about who we are, how we can help you and how to access our support.
If you or others have been injured, see a doctor, go to a hospital emergency department or call an ambulance on 111 regardless of whether you decide to report the incident or not.
A professional medical assessment can help your recovery and ensure physical safety.
Depending on the incident, consider having the doctor prepare a medical report that can be shared with police, if you are comfortable doing that.
After what’s happened the media may want to get comments or interview you, your family, whānau, close friends or any witnesses. Media can sometimes feel demanding and intrusive during stressful times but it’s your decision if you want to speak to them or not and what you feel comfortable sharing.
These situations can seem very unjust and unfair and can cause both grief and trauma. There is an overlap between these two reactions but there are also some differences. Grief is a normal reaction to loss, featuring a range of responses that stem from sadness. Trauma is a normal reaction to an abnormal event, featuring a range of responses that stem from fear and anxiety.
To help them cope through what’s happened, provide a safe and supportive space for children and young people to process their thoughts in their own way and reassure them it’s not their fault.
Family, whānau and friends can suddenly be called on to help someone who is a victim, witness, or has been bereaved by a crime or a traumatic event. Your caring support can help the person feel more able to cope and begin to recover. Sometimes it’s hard to know what to do or say and you may be feeling stressed by their situation as well. Being there to listen and taking care of yourself along the way helps.
Any sudden death that is unexpected, violent or suspicious will be investigated by a coroner. Coroners are responsible for determining the details surrounding the death, including how, where, when, and why it occurred. This information is important in listing the cause of death on the official death certificate. It is a complex process that can vary according to the different circumstances of the death but is handled carefully and respectfully by those involved.
For many, a ceremonial blessing of the site where a person has died is an essential part of processing the loss. It acknowledges of the spiritual impact of the tragedy and protects and guides the spirit of the deceased. It respects and honours the dignity of the deceased person, their family, whānau, and community.
For Māori, it can include lifting of the tapu on the site and karakia. Other cultural and faith groups have their own unique blessing ceremonies. Some family or whānau members may choose to visit the scene and be part of a blessing ceremony and others may not. They may prefer to hold a private blessing or open it to whomever would like to come, including from the community.
If you are an immediate family or whānau member wishing to organise a blessing for the site, you could contact your kaumātua, local marae, church or faith centre, the police officer who has been working with you, a Police Iwi Liaison Officer, or speak to a Support Worker.
If you don't personally know the family or whānau but witnessed or discovered the incident, you can speak to a Support Worker if you'd like to attend a blessing, provided it is open to the public and the family or whānau are comfortable with that.
Advice and information is available from Aotearoa New Zealand embassies in the country concerned and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade (MFAT) can help. They can liaise with New Zealand Police and the country the person died in about the local investigation and justice process.
Official processes required in the country the person died in.
Available local burial or cremation options and any requirements that must be met.
Contact details for funeral directors in that country who could manage the funeral or tangihanga.
How you can bring back the person’s body or ashes (repatriation) to Aotearoa New Zealand.
The immediate family or whānau can ask a funeral director in Aotearoa New Zealand about the options they have for arranging for their loved one's body or ashes to be repatriated (brought back to New Zealand).
If you live overseas but the death of someone close to you has happened in Aotearoa New Zealand, the bereaved family or whānau are able to access some assistance here in Aotearoa New Zealand.
Manaaki Tāngata | Victim Support
Call us 24/7 on 0800 842 846 to be connected to a Support Worker for assistance.
The Ministry of Justice's Victims Information Centre
Find information, advice and support. Contact them here.
Support through the criminal justice system
Look in this directory to find a New Zealand lawyer
Some financial support
ACC may accept a claim for accidental death which would provide financial support to cover some costs when the death of a New Zealander has been confirmed by police as murder or manslaughter. If you're overseas contact ACC on +64 7 848 7400
Your chosen funeral director can do as little or as much as you want them to do. Talk with your funeral director about what you would like, including any cultural or religious rituals you want honoured. Ask them about costs and payment options, so you can make choices that are manageable.
collecting the person’s body from the mortuary and caring for them at their funeral home until burial or cremation
providing information about necessary legal requirements after a death
registering the death and helping families get a copy of the death certificate
explaining how you can bring back the person’s body or ashes (repatriation) to Aotearoa New Zealand.
preparing the body for viewing if the family wishes this and it is possible
fulfilling the family’s choices for the funeral, tangihanga (tangi), or memorial event
checking if the person’s legal will requested certain funeral arrangements
organising cremation or burial procedures that meet necessary requirements
helping families apply for financial assistance, if needed
The Victim Notification Register provides victims of serious crimes with notifications about what's happening to the person that offended against them as they move through the justice system. This includes their Parole Board hearings, temporary prison releases, home detention, hospital detention or prison release date.
To receive notifications and be kept informed, victims must apply to be listed on the Victim Notification Register. Victims are also able to nominate someone else as a representative to receive the notification on their behalf.
A victim can apply to be on the register at any stage after an offender has been charged.
The Police determine a victim’s eligibility to be on the Register and the Department of Corrections runs the confidential Register service.
A Victim Impact Statement is your opportunity to tell the court and the offender how the crime has personally affected you as a victim - emotionally, physically, financially, socially and psychologically, and in your daily life. This is a different statement to the one you gave to police after the crime occurred.
A Victim Impact Statement helps the court understand your views about the offending and the information you provide, if you decide to make a statement, will be considered by the judge when the offender is being sentenced.
The tragic death of someone close to us is always distressing, and when it happens unexpectedly or in some cases violently, it can be even more challenging. We might hear the news from others or have witnessed the person’s death ourselves, and the shock can leave us unsure about what we need to do.
A lot needs to happen within the first few days after a death and many people and agencies become involved. They understand how distressing this time is will support you through it respectfully and with care.
Support is here for you when things get tough. You don't have to face it alone. Reach out to these confidential and non-judgmental services to discuss your situation and get the help you need.
A crime, unexpected death, or serious incident can quickly become public information when the media shares details about what’s happened.
After a very serious crime, police may offer to work with you to release a media statement. In other situations, anyone from a media organisation could contact you, your family, whānau, friends, acquaintances, and even people you barely know to ask for details, comments, or an interview.
If the media contact you, it is your decision as to whether you wish to speak to them or not.
The media can have a positive role in assisting with enquiries if you or family and whānau members are asked to make a formal public request for more information about the incident. Occasionally journalists also independently investigate a case and find helpful new evidence. Their reporting may also help the police locate an offender through appeals for information, or alert the public to any risks.
However, it pays to assume the media may not have your best interests in mind. Victims sometimes find that journalists can be persistent, demanding, and intrusive when they are searching for details about a story. Their attention may be distressing and they sometimes find inventive ways to discover more information, including staking out homes, hospitals, and workplaces, or taking pictures from social media accounts without asking.
Be aware that you might also unexpectedly hear, read, or see something in the media about your case or incident that you may find upsetting. It can also be stressful reliving an already traumatic experience through media and to hear information which may not reflect events as you experienced them.
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If there has been a homicide, a workplace or road fatality, or a death in a traumatic event like a fire or natural disaster, the police will only officially release to the media the name of the deceased once the formal identification of the body has been made. They will talk with the immediate family about this timing.
In the release police may include details like the gender, approximate age of the person and where they were found. They might also state that they have referred the death to the coroner or started a homicide inquiry. If you wish, the police officer in charge of your case, usually called the "OC" or Officer in Charge, can help your family or whānau to prepare and release a family statement as well.
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Some victims find it helpful and empowering to share their story. For others, dealing with the media is very stressful. Speaking with the media or not is your choice.
Responding to media inquiries
Media reporting
Ongoing media attention
Responding to media inquiries
Strategic engagement
Choosing a spokesperson
Content sharing considerations
Managing Interviews
Addressing misinformation
Ongoing media attention
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Aotearoa New Zealand has an open justice system and members of the public and media can attend most court cases. The media do play an important role in reporting on cases.
In certain instances, the judge can close the courtroom to the public and media, or at their discretion, limit media presence or reporting on specific details of a case.
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There are laws and guidelines governing what journalists can and cannot report on.
Under law in Aotearoa New Zealand, the media must follow certain restrictions about what they can report if a death appears to have been by suicide. These rules exist to reduce the chance of further suicides in the community.
After a suicide, the media cannot make public:
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If you feel that media pressure has become too intrusive or demanding, or if you have concerns or questions, you can talk to the Officer in Charge or your Support Worker.
You can call us on 0800 842 846 or visit our How we can help page to find out more about who we are, how we can help you, and how to access our support.
To lodge a complaint about media content visit the New Zealand Media Council website.
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