Captions by James Brown. Captions were made with the support of NZ On Air. - Tonight, the case of the missing cows continues, as more customers of the same grazier come forward. - I said, 'They're actually stolen. They're mine. They should have been returned.' - Plus, marriage ` it's meant to be forever. But what about the rings? - I could possibly count how many times I wore it. Probably about seven or eight times. - And car insurance premiums are getting more expensive, but is cutting back really wise? - When you're in the thick of it... In she goes! ...it's hard to know what to throw away... How are we gonna get any fish without you? ...and what to keep. www.able.co.nz Copyright Able 2024 - Tena koutou katoa. Welcome to the show. Now, cows going missing ` yep, it's a thing. In February this year Fair Go helped one farmer get compensation after his cows weren't returned after grazing. - Now we can reveal the same grazier has let down other farmers in the area. One wants his money. The others just want answers. Here's Gill. (GENTLE COUNTRY GUITAR MUSIC) - We're back in Taranaki. Different farmers, same problem. We're talking missing cows. Missing while under the care of grazier Miles Waite. So, what do we already know? All up last year, of the 62 cows that went to Miles Waite's farm, 25 didn't come back. This was his land. He says they fell down holes and died. - MILES: These are massive tomo holes and gullies and that. - We couldn't find any evidence of big tomos. And you'd think you'd smell a dead cow. - Oh, not in this country, you wouldn't. - Well, some say they can definitely smell a rat. Like Allan Marx, one of three farmers who have come with new information to Fair Go, prompted by our story. - You can't just lose that many animals without finding a trace of them. They turn up dead. They smell bad. They don't just disappear. - We'll hear from Allan later. But first, we travel back to 2013. (SOMBRE GUITAR MUSIC) Nathan Saunders was farming then. He sent 14 beef cows to Miles Waite for grazing, just for three months, but ended up short of three. - He explained that they had died. I wouldn't think healthy animals that are around 500 kilos would just drop dead. - It was a loss of a few thousand dollars, so Nathan asked for some money back, but... - Nah, no compensation. - Why not? - We just got the run-around. - The contract was with PGG Wrightson, where his wife worked, so she didn't want to make a fuss. PGG says it's hard to investigate, as key staff have left since 2013. But Nathan isn't even seeking money. He just wants people to know how far back this was happening. From 2013, we'll time travel forward a couple of years to 2015. Tracey Burnell was also a farmer back then, and is currently a fan of Fair Go, hardly believing our recent story, because she'd lost cows to Miles Waite too. - I was shocked. 10 years later. Couldn't believe it ` same person, same thing. - She had paid Miles to graze 10 cows, but four didn't come back ` that's nearly half. - I said, 'Oh, where are the rest?' And the truckie said, 'Oh, that's all I was told to bring.' So I thought, 'Oh, I'll get in touch with the grazier,' which I did, and he said, 'Oh, that's strange. They were all there this morning when I yarded them. 'The gate must have come open on the yard.' - This is her parents' farm. Tracey was changing career at the time, so was selling her stock, only to be told by Miles... - 'I haven't been able to find them. They must have died.' Come on! - But he found two and sent them back, saying the other two really must be dead. Tracey's mum was a grazier herself over the years, and told Tracey... - The grazier will always let you know if an animal is lost. I've never heard of anyone paying for 52 weeks and then being told that they must have died. - Then Tracey got a call from a records keeper, Livestock Improvement, asking her to transfer two cows to a young farmer who had bought them. She thought, 'What the`?' - Uh, no, didn't sell those cows. They are meant to be dead. I said, 'They're actually stolen. They're mine. They should have been returned.' - It inspired her to seek compensation. - I'd engaged a lawyer. Cos I'd tried the police, and they said it's a civil matter. - In the end, she took Miles Waite and the stock agents, who that time was NZ Farmers, to the Disputes Tribunal. - Encouraged by some other local farmers. - She won. NZ Farmers and Miles Waite were ordered to pay $1000 each in compensation, and Miles also had to hand to Tracey the proceeds from selling a cow with calf. NZ Farmers says... - We note the tribunal's record of its appreciation to the parties for the constructive manner in which the unfortunate dispute has been resolved. - So why did it happen? It says... - We did not see the property as inherently unsuited for carry-over grazing. - But it's not been involved with Miles Waite since, while he's carried on. - I thought he would have learnt his lesson. - Not so fast. We're now heading to 2022. Here's Allan again. He expected 23 cows back in May that year but was eight short. - A very high percentage, when you consider that they were all present and correct at pregnancy testing in March. - Same grazier, Miles Waite, recommended by the same agent that we spoke to in our previous story ` Progressive Livestock's Kim Harrison. So, Kim Harrison put it down that year to extreme flooding. - I don't actually think that farm was badly affected, out there. - Yet that was Miles Waite's story ` as Kim says this was too. - So you don't think the cows fell down and died? - In total, 15 cows were missing in 2022. Miles Waite did compensate one farmer for seven, but not Allan for his eight. - Kim and I attempted to get meetings on farm or in Stratford with Miles Waite, and he was just a no-show. - So Allan sent an invoice for the amount he believed the missing cows were worth. This is the valuation? - Yep, so, dated the end of September. - 2022. - Yep, '22. - But Kim Harrison said the valuation was too high and would have to be done independently for him to process, so... - It wasn't paid. Then, almost a year later... - One of my animals appeared in the sale ads in Stratford with my NAIT tag still in ear. - This was the sale yard, and the sale was of Miles' own stock. The NAIT tag is part of a national tracking system. It identified the cow was from Allan's herd. The transfer of any animal should be flagged on the NAIT system. So why is this happening? Poor management? - It would have to be gross mismanagement. Anyone can lose the odd animal, but not the sort of numbers that we're talking about. - 15 in 2022, 25 in 2023, as we covered last time. Kim Harrison says he would have stopped that intake but was only aware of the issues with Miles after it was too late. - How so? But he can help with compensation and supports Allan pursuing it again. - I had them re-valued. That's this here. And, yeah, so there you go. - So this is a copy of the statement. We sent it to Progressive Livestock, who sent it passed it to Miles Waite and asked him to pay it immediately. They also CC'd us into an email, and they are not happy, saying they are fed up with being blindsided by his nonsense. Now, we got in touch with Miles, and all he really said was that he's never stolen anything and he was going to take us to the police. Hmm. We haven't been hauled up for questioning yet. A different investigation is now happening, though. The Ministry of Primary Industries has taken the bull by the horns, looking at the use ` or lack of ` of the NAIT tracking system in all of Miles Waite's dealings. As for the future? - I understand that he's sold his farm now, so I think that's the silver lining for me, is that I know that he can't do that to any other Taranaki young farmers. (MOO!) - You'll probably find this hard to believe, Gill, but I've actually never owned any cows. But I'm sure it is very, very annoying to have seven go missing, so let's hope Miles Waite pays up. - I hope so. E haere ake nei, coming up ` a broken ring is better than a broken heart, but... - A wedding ring should last for the length of a marriage, right? - Plus, tips and tricks for getting the most out of your car insurance. - So here's how you can cut it but keep it. - Kia ora. Nau mai, hoki mai. Welcome back. Now, when you get married, the intention is it's forever ` you know, 'Till death do us part.' - Those promises are sealed by an exchange of rings, precious metal you'd expect to last, maybe even outlast a marriage. But it seems that's not always the case. Here's Carolyn Robinson. - We're making some bao buns with chicken. - Chelsea and Romi are newlyweds, Swapping 'I dos' just seven months ago. But after just four months of wedded bliss, one of the gold bands on Romi's wedding ring ` like this one ` snapped. - I was actually heartbroken at the fact that yeah, it's my wedding ring. - A wedding ring should last for the length of your marriage, right? - The Prasads bought the ring from Michael Hill Jeweller in December of 2022, nine months before their big day. - Weddings are expensive, so these kinds of things, you have to spread the costs out. We paid $480, but the original price was $800. - Romi wore his ring on weekends only, due to the physical nature of his job. - I'm a courier driver, and there's a lot of hazards ` example, picking up boxes, heavy items, there's oddly shaped boxes and parcels that we pick up all the time. I might lose it, firstly. Secondly, I might damage it. That's why I went and got a tattoo on my ring finger. - The Prasads took the ring back to Michael Hill Jeweller, where they were told the break was due to wear and tear. - I could possibly count how many times I wore it. Probably about seven or eight times. It's basically brand new, but... - It's not even scratched or anything. - It wasn't even scratched. - They were quoted $100 to repair it, a cost they would have to bear, as the warranty had just expired. - We got married on the 27th of September, and then by mid-January it was broken, which is only four months of it being out of the box. They didn't really even care. They just basically stated the fact that the ring was one month over the warranty, and that there was nothing they could do. - But when Chelsea did some digging on Michael Hill's own website, she discovered they weren't alone. - Chelsea insisted they shouldn't have to pay, and was eventually offered a replacement. - I had to go back to them about four times. The only reason why they gave us a resolution was because I pretty much brought up the Consumer Guarantees Act. - Surely it's just this particular ring. - (LAUGHS) - Well, meet the Gordons. Dan and Elesha are enjoying married life with a toddler. - We're gonna go home and watch The Wiggles. - They paid around $3000 for Elesha's ring set six years ago, settling on these sparklers. - This sounds so cliche, but I was so like, 'Oh, this is it!' - Every guy wants to give his wife the ring of her dreams. - But it's become a nightmare, with the engagement ring needing multiple repairs.. - At least six times. A few diamonds in it started falling out. Like I looked down, and it'd be gone. One day I looked down, and it had actually snapped, the gold. I was distraught. - They went back to Michael Hill and paid $400 for it to be fixed. - But it happened three more times. And this last time, which was probably a month ago, it was just like, 'How is this still happening?' Like, this is a gold ring that we paid nearly four grand for, and it's snapping in half. The manager said, 'You obviously play... do you play intense sports?' And we laugh about it, cos I'm not that person. - Michael Hill had a solution, of sorts. - They said, 'Well, it's obviously time for an upgrade.' And I was really shocked by that. - Caitlin Worth is a design director at Jewellers Workshop. We can't show her Romi's wedding band, as it's already gone back, but she's had a good look at Elesha's and says it's a design fault. - Right up the top by the setting, there's really only one little connection right at the base. And that's only about 0.7mm thick. And then up the top, where the kinda top the of band connects to the setting, that was only ever tacked on. The band is hollow. It probably would have been quite easy for her to flex it. I don't think you would have to have done anything particularly aggressive to get this ring to break. - Daddy. - Yeah, it is Daddy. - Back at the Gordons' house, after some drawn-out to-ing and fro-ing, a new ring is on the way. But it comes with a catch. - We'll offer you a replacement of the ring. Because thankfully for us, our ring is still available online. But they said that you'd have to pay the difference in inflation. They kinda put me on the spot. I kinda had to decide in that moment. But I managed to get it down to them honouring the retail price. So that took it down to about $600. After literally two years of dealing with it, I was just wanting to be able to move on and have my ring back and not have to deal with them ever again. - The Prasads no longer have their original ring, either. After some tense discussions, Michael Hill agreed to a swap. - I asked if I could have the same ring again. They basically told me that it wasn't gonna be produced any more, which is interesting, because it's still on their website. They ended up saying, 'Don't worry. We won't make you pay the extra.' Which I thought was quite interesting, considering their product broke, and this was supposed to be, like, a resolution in my favour. But really, they thought about charging me more. - Both couples feel Michael Hill has failed to understand the real value the rings had. - Proposing with her, and being able to lift it out and putting it on her finger, we can look and see and remember the time when we got engaged and the joy we felt, and the excitement of being engaged, and then being able to tell our parents and friends and family. And you see that all in that ring. - We have to give back the broken one. And it's like, even for my daughter, to just not be able to hand it back down and be like, 'This was the ring that Dad proposed to, under this tree.' - We've got photos of the wedding, with a ring that we don't have any more. That new ring doesn't really hold any value, because it didn't come on the travel with us to Fiji. It wasn't at the wedding day. - It wasn't there when we were planning. - It's just a piece of jewellery. - Yeah, it's just a piece of jewellery in a box. - At this point. - We asked Michael Hill why the rings seemed doomed for splitsville. They said... - We are sorry that these customers did not feel the service experience they received was up to our usual standard. We are continuing to review the background and correspondence that led to the customer outcomes. Following Michael Hill's internal review, we will liaise directly with both customers to ensure their concerns are resolved. - Michael Hill says its rings can be 'cherished for a lifetime', a vow that's definitely been broken. - I was so sick of not having a ring on, so I just went to this little cheap jewellery shop and bought this for $10. This one has been so sturdy, and it's lasted. It hasn't broken. It looks fake, but who cares? (LAUGHS) - At least the 'till death do us part' stuff looks to be solid. - Such lovely couples. That must be so disappointing for them. - I know. So what we hope now is that Michael Hill steps up and puts it right for them. - E haere ake nei, coming up ` do you know what to do if you get into a prang? - And don't forget your own insurance ` a glovebox checklist. A five-minute trick. Pop that in there with a pen. So if the worst does happen, at least you've got it covered. (BANG!) - Kia ora. Nau mai, hoki mai. Welcome back. Now, all eyes are on car insurance, with premiums rising nearly 40% since 2021. - Now, that makes it very tempting to cut back. But pay attention, because as Mary-Jane Aggett found out, that can be a trap that ends up costing in the long run. (BUSY MUSIC) - When you're in the thick of it... In she goes! ...it's hard to know what to throw away... How are we gonna get any fish without you? ...and what to keep. A recent Consumer NZ survey shows just over half of us are concerned about the cost of car insurance. One in 10 have looked at doing away with it completely. - I don't have car insurance, to be honest. I don't have a great car, so it's not really worth me insuring it. - There are so many things where we're having to sort of let go by the wayside right now, with the cost of living squeezing budgets so tight. But car insurance? Really, you don't want that to be one of them. - So here's how you can cut it but keep it. First up, review your cover. - You've started working from home more often and maybe you're driving your car less, or there's a teenager that was previously driving your car that's moved out of home, those are all factors that will contribute to the cost of your premium. - I have looked about going around, looking at the options, because I've got a classic car, and they're expensive. - Always try to be comparing, like, which one is cheaper. So if it's cheaper, of course I go to the cheaper one so I can save a bit of money. - Yep, these guys are on to it. Shopping around can save hundreds. And, go on ` be a bit cheeky. - If you really love your insurer but someone else is offering you a slightly more competitive rate, then you've got nothing to lose by bargaining with them and asking if they'll match the competitor's price. - Consumer NZ got quotes for four scenarios ` someone young, middle-aged, an older person, and a family of four. On average, the fam could save as much as 670 bucks a year, youngies around $450, older peeps $480, and middle-aged just over five hundy. Ka-ching, ka-ching. - Exactly. Ka-ching, ka-ching. - You can also increase your excess. - The most important thing to realise with this one is of course if you increase your excess, you're gonna want to make sure that you can actually pay that excess if the worst-case scenario did happen. - And Consumer's final tip? Pay it all in one hit. - Realistically, for a lot of people this isn't always possible. If you can do it, great ` you've got yourself a discount. - And whatever insurance you've got... What's this muppet doing? - Is she going or is she stopping? - ...you need to make sure, if the worst happens, you get a payout. (BANG!) Oh, lordy! If you had a ding in the car park now, would you know what you had to do? - Oh, pretty much, yeah ` just to make a claim. I mean, I've done it before. - Nah, I wouldn't really do much, unless it's a serious one. - Get the details of the other person. - Harald Leeuwenburgh says part of teaching driving is making sure people know what to do when they're in a prang. - It's quite important to think straight. Am I in a safe position to get out of the car? - So what do we do? - Well, I've got a checklist. - Harald recommends keeping a checklist and a pen in your glovebox. - So you can just have a quick look and make sure you've ticked all the boxes, you've covered all the bits and pieces, because people will be in shock and possibly make rushed decisions. - Take photos, including of the other person's driver's licence. And even do a quick sketch of the scene. - Just to sort of see how the vehicles were positioned. - You want have a strong case for your insurance company. I was just driving along the road like normal, and then you hit me. So he says nab the details of a witness. - Get their contact details, just to see if they're happy to be a witness. - And don't forget your own insurance ` a glovebox checklist. A five-minute trick. Pop that in there with a pen. So if the worst does happen, at least you've got it covered. (BANG!) - Now, that is dedication to the show. I hope she gets her car fixed soon. And some great points raised there. - There sure were. The other useful consumer news this week is that Fair Go is evolving. We're excited about a proposal to keep telling your stories in a new way, so continue to write in to us. - You can find us on Facebook or email us at fairgo@tvnz.co.nz. - And if you only caught part of the show, you can catch our stories on TVNZ+ and on YouTube. - Thanks for watching, and for all of your wonderful support. Until next week... - BOTH: Pomarie.