New Zealand recorded 169 accidental overdose deaths in 2025, according to an analysis by the NZ Drug Foundation – twice the number of people who died from drowning and nearly two-thirds of the road toll.
The number appears to have risen compared with previous years, although the foundation is urging caution, with nearly half of the cases still provisional.
NZ Drug Foundation executive director Sarah Helm said stimulant deaths had been concerningly high since 2022.
“Over the last couple of years, we've seen a huge increase in the amount of methamphetamine and cocaine consumed. And over the last couple of years, we've seen more stimulant-related hospitalisations and overdose fatalities,” she said.
GP and addiction specialist Dr Vicki Macfarlane said there was not enough public awareness of the risks.
“In particular, people who are a little bit older who are at risk of serious cardiovascular complications from using high doses of stimulants, we need to raise awareness of that,” Macfarlane said.
People aged 45–54 have the highest overdose death rate, while Māori are also overrepresented in the figures.
“They are twice as likely to die of an overdose than non-Māori and they are also twice as likely to present to the hospitals with accidental poisoning,” Macfarlane said.
The toll on families
Not included in the report is Stewart Pledger-Davies, who died this year aged 32.
His mother, Joanna Newton, described him as “that joking brother, annoying, super overprotective, super generous”.
However, she said he had trouble focusing at school, began consuming alcohol in his teens and had turned to methamphetamine in recent years.
Stewart died in the back of an ambulance after being found near Newton’s home in Napier.
“We believe that he was with someone and they were trying to get him back to my house and just put him out on the side of the road and probably because they themselves were addicts or dealers and didn't want to get in trouble,” she said.
Newton said she takes her grief one day at a time and continues to tell Stewart’s story.
“I know that I'm not the only parent who's going through this I know that there's other familes and if my son's death can save even one person then that would fulfill him, because that's that's what he wanted,” she said.
Push for change
Newton and the Drug Foundation are both pushing for a change in the law, with the Drug Overdose (Assistance Protection) Legislation Bill, or “Good Samaritan Bill”, currently before the Health Committee.
The bill would remove criminal penalties for people seeking help during an overdose, potentially saving lives.
The Drug Foundation is also calling for a comprehensive overdose programme with targeted support for at-risk groups, as well as a take-home naloxone scheme like the one operating in Australia.
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