• An Auckland man was nearly rammed off the road by an aggressive ute driver in Manukau.
• The ute driver attempted to swerve into the man’s car and later tried to open his door.
• The victim recorded the incident and contacted police; the driver’s employer is handling it internally.

An Auckland man was almost rammed off the road in South Auckland’s Manukau during a frightening encounter with an aggressive ute driver.

The man, who wished to remain anonymous, told the Herald he was turning onto Cavendish Ave on Monday morning when a ute came flying up behind him.

“It seemed like he was desperate to get around me,” he said.

“He tries to undertake me as I move into the left lane. Then he swerves out right, pulls up alongside me and tries to swerve into my front end.”

The aggressive driver then stopped his car in front of his vehicle, almost causing a collision.

“I’m recording by that point and trying to get the police on the phone.”

The man said the ute driver got out of his car, marched over to his car and started yanking at the door handle.

“He said ‘You’ve got a f**king camera’ and went back to get his and try again,” he said.

“I turn my phone around and showed him I was on the 111 call. Then he got in his ute and absolutely floored it.

“It was quite scary. I was breathing heavily. Luckily, my car has automatic doors otherwise, he would have got in, and I have no doubt he would have tried to attack me.”

The man found the name of the company for which the man works and approached his boss with the footage.

“Apparently they are dealing with it internally.”

A police spokesperson said there had been an earlier road rage incident in the Papatoetoe area.

“The second vehicle involved had left the area and wasn’t located at the time.

“Advice was provided around reporting the manner of driving.”

David Williams is an Auckland-based Multimedia Journalist who joined the Herald in 2023. He covers breaking news and general topics.