Victim Support
Free, nationwide support for people affected by crime, suicide and traumatic events.
We are here for you, 24/7.
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After experiencing or witnessing a crime or traumatic event, you may feel unsafe and lose your sense of security or trust. It's important to prioritise your safety to minimise any harm and protect yourself from any risks.
From creating a safety plan, to protecting your home or safeguarding your personal information, there are steps you can take to enhance your safety and support you to move forward in your recovery.
If you have experienced a crime or traumatic event, more information and resources to support your particular circumstances can be found on our Crimes and traumatic events pages.
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You may be scared to report a crime for fear of not being believed or taken seriously. Sometimes victims feel that they can’t tell anyone about what happened to them, but it helps when crimes are reported. Police take threats to your security seriously, and want victims to be safe and feel safe.
Some incidents are not a one-off and providing police with information about what happened can help them find the perpetrators and prevent this happening to others.
The more information police are given, the more effectively they can tackle crime and support safer communities. Remember that when a crime occurs, the offender is responsible, not you.
Whether or not you choose to report, you are entitled to free support from Manaaki Tāngata | Victim Support. We can support you to report a crime but if you choose not to, we are still here for you.
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If you’ve been the victim of a crime or traumatic event that has left you feeling unsafe, there are some precautions you can take to help you gain your confidence back.
When you’re going out
When you’re using a car
When you’re at home
Women’s Refuge Whānau Protect Programme provides a free national service to help victims of family violence and harm to stay safely in their homes with practical measures like installing security lights, providing monitored personal panic alarms, replacing locks and fixing broken windows, and connecting them with other support agencies.
This is a service for those victims at very high risk (further victimisation from the offender that will likely result in serious physical injury or death) and some key criteria must be met.
To find out if you might be eligible or to submit an application for this service, please visit the Women’s Refuge Whānau Protect Programme page.
Everyone deserves to feel safe in their relationships. If you are facing family violence and harm, consider making a safety plan. This is a plan of future actions you can take to keep you and your family and whānau members safe if you feel threatened or are in immediate danger.
It’s important you have a safe place to go and trusted people to be around when you need it.
Everyone’s situation is different but support can help; Manaaki Tāngata | Victim Support and other local support services can help you prepare an individual plan that works for you and your family or whānau.
Wellington Women's Refuge Safety planning provides a supportive list of things to consider if you prepare to leave and how to take care of your emotional safety during this challenging time.
If you are a member of the Rainbow community considering leaving a family violence and harm situation, see the Hohou Te Rongo Kahukura Safety Planning resource.
If you have left an abusive relationship you may want to consider having an unlisted phone number and also applying to go on the unpublished electoral roll. This means your address and details will not be publicly available.
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Taking simple steps to stay safe online is important to protect yourself from harm and avoid any negative consequences of online harassment, exposure to harmful content or online scams or fraud.
Anyone can find themselves the victim of a cybercrime. There are some steps you can take to mimise the risk of it happening again and to keep yourself safe overall.
If you've been affected by cybercrime, don't be afraid to use and engage with technology, but be cautious about how to stay safe on your devices.
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If you have serious concerns that someone can access your computer and it's a safety risk for you, consider using a library, workplace, or friend's computer.
When you are browsing the internet, it will save websites you have visited.
If you need to keep your browser history and visits to a website hidden, there are things you can do:
Please be aware that wiping out all your browsing history might raise suspicion for someone tracking you. Consider deleting select items only to avoid it looking suspicious.
If you're in a family harm situation and the person harming you can access your email, it may be a serious risk to you.
To protect yourself, make a strong, difficult-to-guess password. Remember to log out after using your email and never save your password.
If you are sent threatening emails, you may want to ask a trusted family or whānau member, or a friend to print them for you and keep them safe in case you need to use them as proof if police become involved.
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Mobile phones can be an easy target for theft but also for those experiencing family harm and harassment.
If your mobile phone has been stolen or someone has access to it, it may mean they have access to your personal information, browser history or even banking information.
CERT NZ has put together some simple steps you can take to keep this information on your phone secure.
Mobile or phone harassment involves unwanted voicemails, calls, messaging, video, or photo messages that cause you to feel harassed, threatened, embarrassed, or victimized.
Netsafe's mobile phone harassment and abuse information can guide you on how to protect yourself and block a phone number.
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It’s important for everyone to feel safe in their own home. You can take some simple security measures so that you can minimise risk to being burgled and also for you to feel more comfortable again, especially if you have experienced a home burglary, invasion or property damage.
Inside your home
Outside your home
When you're away from your home for a period of time
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A safer community helps protect everyone who lives and works in it. Knowing who your neighbours are or having people nearby that you can trust can create a stronger and more resilient community.
If a crime has been committed in the community, or you have been the victim of a crime, your neighbours may have witnessed something or someone suspicious that could assist police with their investigation. Working together ensures a better chance at everyone’s safety and the safety of the businesses around them too.
There are a number of local organisations such as Neighbourhood Support, Māori Wardens and Community Patrol New Zealand (CPNZ) that work hard to keep our communities safe. Connecting with them or simply knowing they have an active and positive presence in your community can help you to begin to feel secure again.
New Zealand Police also have specialist liaison officers working in communities around the country. They team up with communities to make it easier for them to use police services, pass on community worries to the Police, and assist in tackling and stopping crimes in communities. They can listen to your concerns and work with the Police to prevent victimisations and make your community safer.
You can make contact with Iwi, Pacific, Ethinic and Diversity Liaison Officers if you have an issue or query that you want to discuss, or want advice from them.
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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.
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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. Court cases can take some time and the experience can be unfamiliar and overwhelming. You don’t have to go through this alone. Your Victim Support Worker can help you throughout the court process, after any sentencing, answer questions you may have, and be there for you if you want someone to talk to and someone to help you cope through the experience.
We can support you with:
You can call us directly 24/7 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.
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 is an acknowledgement of the spiritual impact of the tragedy on so many people. It commends the spirit of the person who has died and respects and honours the dignity of the deceased person, their family, whānau, and community.
A blessing usually includes a karakia. For Māori, a it can include a clearing of the tapu on the site. Other cultural and faith groups have their own unique approaches to 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 local marae, church or faith centre, cultural leader, the police officer who has been working with the family or whānau, 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 death, you can speak to a Support Worker if you'd like to attend a blessing, provided it is open to the public.
Immediate family or whānau members have the option to request viewing and spending time with the deceased person's body at the mortuary, before any post mortem is conducted.
All viewings must be authorised by the office of the duty coroner, as the body remains the responsibility of the coroner until it is released to the immediate family or whānau.
Some hospitals have a family or whānau room for viewing, usually with a screen or window between them and their loved one. The family won’t be able to touch the body or remove items from the body. Certain hospitals may also have dedicated family or whānau rooms where sitting with the body is permitted until its release.
Unfortunately, there are cases where viewing is not possible, particularly when the person has sustained severe injuries. This will be explained to you if this happens.
If you wish, you can also talk to a funeral director of your choice about any other options there are for sitting with or viewing your loved one’s body after it has been released from the mortuary, or about following any specific cultural traditions you need respected at this time.
If you and your family and whānau decide to view the body at any stage, it can help to know that your loved one’s appearance will have changed, including their facial features and skin colour, which is normal after a death but can understandably be unsettling for some people.
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
Help, advice and information for people (including children and young people) who have had something harmful happen to them online or in a virtual place or space.
