questions about road user charges?

  • A distance-based fee paid by vehicles that use diesel or electricity, ensuring all users contribute to road maintenance. 

  • Road User Charges (RUC) in New Zealand are fees based on how far you drive, mainly for vehicles that don’t pay fuel tax at the pump. They are to help fund the maintenance and improvement of roads, bridges, and infrastructure.

  • If you’ve bought a RUC licence through the RUCker platform, the RUCker support team can let you know about your most recent purchase.  

    If you haven’t purchased RUC before and want to get started with RUCker, please reach out to the RUCker support team and we’ll help get you set up with the right device.  

    If you are not using RUCker and have RUC through another provider, you’ll need to contact NZTA directly, either through their website or by phone, as they’ll ask you some security questions to assist you.

    VTNZ RUCker Support Team – 0800 782 537  

  • Yes, at this stage, you are still required to display a physical Road User Charge (RUC) label.

    • Option 1 (VTNZ RUCker Pilot Customers only): 
      If you purchase your Road User Charges (RUC) through RUCker, we can top you up when your ruc licence gets down to 200km remaining. You can either reach out to us, or we’ll contact you when you’re running low and offer to sort it for you. Once it’s done, we’ll send the label your way. 

    • Option 2: 
      You can also buy your RUC yourself by coming into any of our VTNZ branches that can purchase Road User charges. 

  • If the odometer reading doesn’t match your road user charges and you’ve confirmed the label is for the correct vehicle, there could be a number of reasons. You’ll need to contact NZTA to look into it.

questions about rucKER?

  • RUCker is compatible with Android smartphones running version 8.0 or later, and iOS devices running version 15 or later. 

    If you’re unsure whether your smartphone is compatible, or if you need help downloading the RUCker app, please contact us on 0800 RUCKER (0800 782 537) or email rucker@vtnz.co.nz. 

  • If a trip is completed using the Mini RUCker or RUCker+ without a connected smartphone running the RUCker app, the trip will be detected, but it won’t include GPS data, and no distance will be recorded. 

    To avoid this, please make sure a smartphone with the RUCker app is in the vehicle whenever it’s being used. 

    If someone else is driving the vehicle, they can be added as a secondary driver, so all trips are captured and mileage is recorded accurately. 

    If you have any further questions, feel free to contact us on 0800 RUCKER (0800 782 537) or email us at rucker@vtnz.co.nz.

  • To disable notifications, start by going to your device settings and opening the notifications section. Locate the RUCker app and switch off its notifications. You can also turn off notifications within the RUCker app by opening it, accessing the settings menu, and selecting the option to disable notifications. 

    Disabling notifications may cause you to miss important alerts about errors or changes in RUCker. For example, if Bluetooth is turned off, you will receive a notification advising that it needs to be enabled for trips to be recorded accurately. If Bluetooth remains off, your trips will not be captured. In addition, if any devices are not set up correctly, you will not receive notifications indicating that the setup is incomplete.

  • Trip tracking in RUCker uses a range of smartphone permissions to provide a complete and accurate view of your journeys. This includes Bluetooth, location services (GPS), activity monitoring (physical activity), and mobile network access. Once these settings are fully enabled and optimized, your trips will be recorded automatically.  

    If you experience any issues or need assistance, please contact us on 0800RUCKER (0800 782 537) or email rucker@vtnz.co.nz.  

  • If your device is repeatedly disconnecting or not tracking trips, please contact us on 0800 RUCKER (0800 782 537) and we can troubleshoot the issue with you over the phone. If we’re unable to resolve the problem through troubleshooting, we can arrange a replacement device. 

  • If you’re having trouble locating your vehicle in the RUCker app, please contact the RUCker support team on 0800 RUCKER (0800 782 537) and we’ll look into it for you.

  • If your RUCker device becomes loose, you can contact the RUCker support team for advice or visit your nearest VTNZ branch. If the Trucker RUCker has come loose, we can assist with securely reattaching it to the vehicle’s battery.

  • If you’d like your RUCker device removed from your vehicle, please contact us on 0800 RUCKER (0800 782 537) and we’ll deactivate your account. You can then return the device(s) by dropping them off at your nearest VTNZ branch. 

  • If you sell your car, just get in touch with the RUCker Support Team and we can reassign the RUCker device to the new owner. We’ll just need to confirm the new owner’s registration details before making any changes. 

    If you’d rather move the device to another vehicle, we can transfer it over for you while keeping the same device number.

  • If you’re changing plates but keeping the same vehicle, we can simply update your details. You can contact us on 0800 782 537 or email us at rucker@vtnz.co.nz.

  • The device can be removed from the damaged windscreen and attached to the new one. For Mini RUCker and RUCker+, the adhesive will just need replacing and we can recommend you get this from your local hardware store, or you can contact us and we can send you some for a small fee.

  • Give us a call on 0800 RUCKER (0800 782 537) and we’ll offboard the device and pause your account until you’re ready to set things up again with a new vehicle.

Road user charges are changing in New Zealand as petrol vehicles will stop paying a petrol tax and will start paying for road user charges (RUC).

This means charges will be based on how far a vehicle travels, rather than how much fuel it uses.