IR-01-26-1135
11 February 2026
Joel Pitt
[FYI request #33495 email]
Dear Joel
Thank you for your Official Information Act 1982 (OIA) request received 13 January 2026
in which you asked about roadside drug testing, following an incident where a driver
tested positive. I have answered each part of your request below.
1. Substance identification
•
At the time the press release was issued, did Police have any evidence
capable of distinguishing methamphetamine from MDMA or other
amphetamine-type substances, beyond the initial DrugWipe 3S roadside oral
fluid screening test?
2. Test capability
•
Do Police acknowledge that the DrugWipe 3S roadside oral fluid screening
test cannot distinguish between methamphetamine and MDMA, and instead
indicates only the possible presence of an amphetamine-type substance?
Police notes that the
Securetec DrugWipe 3 S device used for roadside drug testing
screens for four drugs across three testing channels; one for THC (cannabis), one for
cocaine, and one combined channel for methamphetamine and MDMA (ecstasy).
However, as the press release you refer to relates to an ongoing Court proceeding,
Police is not able to provide further comment. Your request as it relates to the ongoing
case is therefore refused under section 6(c) of the OIA to avoid prejudice the
maintenance of the law, including the right to a fair trial.
3. False positive rate
•
Do Police acknowledge that the DrugWipe 3S (or equivalent roadside oral
fluid screening tests) has a documented false positive rate of approximately
10%, meaning a positive screening result does not, on its own, establish drug
consumption?
As part of the procurement process, all roadside drug testing equipment considered by
Police was independently verified in New Zealand or Australia. Accuracy verification
confirmed the equipment now in use met the Australian New Zealand Standard for oral
fluid testing in respect of false positives and false negatives.
Police National Headquarters 180 Molesworth Street. PO Box 3017, Wellington 6140, New Zealand.
Telephone: 04 474 9499. Fax: 04 498 7400. www.police.govt.nz
Verification testing of the roadside drug screening device identified a 5% false positive
rate. Confirmation testing of all false positive results found that all had drugs present but
below New Zealand’s legal threshold. No infringement notice would be issued in these
cases because these are only issued based on a positive result at or above the threshold
of the subsequent evidential laboratory test.
No false negatives occurred during verification.
The roadside drug driving thresholds are published in the Land Transport (Approved Oral
Fluid Screening Device) Notice 2025. Please note that the roadside thresholds are set
higher than the laboratory thresholds for issuing an infringement notice.
https://www.legislation.govt.nz/regulation/public/2025/0246/latest/LMS1539637.html
4. Evidential certainty
•
At the time of publication, did Police have any confirmatory saliva or blood
test results establishing drug presence, or was the statement based solely on
an initial screening test followed by refusal or inability to obtain a confirmatory
sample?
As the matter remains before the Court, this part of your request is refused under section
6(c) of the OIA, as release at this time could prejudice the maintenance of the law,
including the right to a fair trial.
5. Accuracy review
•
Have Police reviewed whether describing the individual as a “meth driver” or
implying methamphetamine consumption was factually supported, given the
known limitations of the screening test?
Police did not describe the driver as a “meth driver” as seen in some media headlines.
The media release issued by Police is available here:
https://www.police.govt.nz/news/release/drugged-driver-taken-road-after-roadside-test
If you are not satisfied with the way I have responded to your request, you have the right
under section 28(3) of the OIA to ask the Ombudsman to review my decisions.
Information on how to do this is available online at
www.ombudsman.parliament.nz.
Yours sincerely
Superintendent Steve Greally
Director: Road Policing
New Zealand Police
