A police checkpoint on a busy main road in South Auckland at this time of year tends not to be good news, so you can imagine the reaction of stressed-out drivers when they see flashing lights, before realising all is not what it seems.
Sergeants Charmaine Smith and Shaun Warin were on the front line at the checkpoint, keeping an eye out for driver behaviour and making sure cars were up to safety standards.
It includes looking at things like kids' car seats and hands-free kits for cars.
Traffic was backed up by mid-morning and they had to run a tight ship.
But when motorists were pulled over and asked to get out of the vehicle, it wasn't because they were getting a ticket.
Earlier in the day, police were at the checkout, picking up bags of Christmas food and vouchers.
At the checkpoints, they were handing out hampers instead of tickets.
"The reason we've decided to do a checkpoint here is to reward drivers that are doing things right," Smith says.
The relief is obvious and the gratitude overwhelming.
One woman says she was "sh**ing myself" when pulled over, but knew it was OK.
"A lot of people are struggling this year and it was nice to put smiles on their faces and food in their kitchens," Smith says.
However, it wasn't all fun and games for the officers, who admitted they found duping citizens challenging.
"I found it really hard. One woman was terrified, I wanted to tell her straight away," Smith says.
"I'm terrible at keeping surprises."
Playing Santa might be out of their comfort zone, but they know the rewards will be just as great for the police as the community.
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