KiwiRail has been fined $375,000 after pleading guilty to health and safety charges over the grounding of the Interislander ferry Aratere in Picton Harbour in June 2024, with the Wellington District Court handing down the sentence on 4 May 2026. The company was also ordered to pay $25,000 in costs. 

The Aratere ran aground at Titoki Bay on the evening of 21 June 2024 while on a freight sailing from Picton to Wellington with 39 crew and eight passengers aboard; the vessel was refloated the following evening, and there were no oil spills or hull breaches.

Maritime New Zealand’s investigation concluded the grounding was caused by a clear knowledge gap among the bridge crew around a recently modified steering console, including how to override automatic commands and handle the system in an emergency. The regulator pointed to a short autopilot sequence the crew were unable to interrupt before the ferry veered off course and struck the shore. 

Maritime NZ Director Kirstie Hewlett said steering systems are safety-critical and stressed the need for masters and crews to be properly trained and given sufficient time to familiarise themselves with any newly installed safety-critical equipment.

The regulator’s case summary identified multiple organisational failures at KiwiRail, including shortcomings in change-management processes, training and familiarisation procedures, documentation, control of critical steering functions, and bridge resource management. 

Maritime NZ described the event as an example of altering safety-critical equipment without ensuring operators understood how it worked. 

The Aratere, built in 1998 and lengthened in 2011, is one of three ferries that operate across Cook Strait and carries both passengers and rail wagons; it was inspected and repaired after the incident and has returned to service.

The fine continues a pattern of regulator action against KiwiRail for safety failings: the operator was fined $350,000 in 2023 after a rail-yard incident in which a crew member was crushed between wagons.No individual sanctions were ordered by the court; the sentence targeted the corporate entity with the fine and costs only.

Maritime NZ said the verdict carries a broader warning to maritime operators to ensure crews fully understand any new or modified safety-critical systems before they enter service.