Three companies charged in connection with the death of a teenage rubbish truck worker have been sentenced to pay $255,000 in reparations and fines.
Jane Devonshire was killed in August 2015 on Auckland's North Shore when the truck she was working on slid down a bank after its brakes failed.
The truck careened 120 metres down the road before falling over the edge. Ms Devonshire, who was standing on the left hand side of the truck, was thrown from the vehicle and crushed after it landed on top of her. The truck's driver, who survived the crash, had to be cut from the vehicle.
The court heard the truck was overdue for servicing, and despite its brake issues being identified nothing was done to fix it.
Auckland Council, Veolia Environmental Services and N P Dobbe Maintenance all have been ordered to pay $120,000 to Ms Devonshire's family, and $15,000 to the truck's driver.
As well as the reparations, all three parties have been ordered to pay a combined total of $120,000 in fines. Auckland Council: $33,000, Veolia: $65,000, and N P Dobbe: $22,000.
N P Dobbe Maintenance lawyer Eleanor Harrison says the company is remorseful over the death and acknowledges the pain and suffering of the truck's driver and Ms Devonshire's family.
Auckland Council offered its condolences to the Devonshire family, and apologised for the tragic death.
Its lawyer Stacey Shortfall told the court her client accepted it could have done more to prevent the incident, and had offered to pay for Jane Devonshire's headstone.
The council is due to meet with police and Worksafe NZ later this year to discuss how it can improve safety procedures.
"As a council, our work is not over," chief executive Stephen Town said in a statement.
"While we have already made significant changes in the wake of this tragedy, we will continue to monitor our processes to ensure they are the best they can be so that an avoidable accident involving one of our staff or contractors never happens again."
Veolia which held a contract from Auckland Council had leased the truck, and N P Dobbe Maintenance was hired to maintain the vehicle.
The court heard Veolia inadequately oversaw the truck, and had no records of its servicing regime.
The police prosecutor said Auckland Council insufficiently audited its subcontractors, and N P Dobbe Maintenance failed to properly maintain the truck.
Malcolm Crotty, lawyer for Veolia Environmental Services, told the court the company acknowledged a number of failings.
"It's not a case that they took no care, but that there was a comprehensive system that failed."
The court heard the company had taken a number of steps since the incident to ensure it never happened again.
"It now carries out maintenance work in-house, has introduced weekly assessments and carries out regular audits on trucks. There is a renewed focus on brake safety and annual review and refresher training".
Victim impact statements from Ms Devonshire's mother and father were read out to the court on their behalf. Mother Rona Topia says she's still in shock, and suffers anxiety attacks following her daughter's death.
"She was the glue that held us together, she was the light of our lives. I have to keep busy so I don't keep reflecting on her memory."
Ms Devonshire's father Philip says he suffers sleepless nights, and had to resign from his job.
"I couldn't take pressures of work. Nothing will replace Jane. At times I feel like it's a bad dream and think my little girl will text me, but it will never happen."
A fourth party, Truck Leasing Ltd - which owned the truck - was also charged, and is due back in court in December.
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