Insurance firm's case struck off urgent roll
The KZN High Court (Durban) has struck off from the urgent roll an application by insurance comparison group Hippo that sought to remove a Facebook post of a rival.
Fin24 reports that Everything.Insure posted a Facebook reel in March that told consumers that it is different to Hippo in a number of ways. Among its claims was that Hippo only compares quotes from insurers within its stable – the Telesure group.
Telesure includes insurers like 1st for Women, Dial Direct, Budget Insurance and Auto & General.
Everything.Insure also claimed that Hippo only gives ‘indicative quotes’ and that there could be a 40% difference in the actual premium quoted.
Telesure demanded Everything.Insure take the post down.
Everything.Insure archived it for a few days. It said it did so in good faith, with no admission of wrongdoing, to afford Hippo time to clarify what problems it had with its content. It said Hippo declined to provide further details, so it reactivated the post.
Hippo approached the court, saying the Facebook post was defamatory and misleading.
However, Hippo has hit a stumbling block in getting the post removed after the court struck its application off the urgent court roll on 6 April.
Hippo CEO, Ashley Smart, says Everything.Insure has misled consumers, and while the application for urgency was dismissed, the merits of the case will still be heard by the court at a later date.
Everything.Insure said the post was prepared after conducting market research and denies it is defamatory or misleading.
Its executive head, Mishaya Chettiar, maintains that it provides a balanced and factual view of the differences between Hippo and them, so consumers can make informed decisions.
Article disclaimer: While we have made every effort to ensure the accuracy of this article, it is not intended to provide final legal advice as facts and situations will differ from case to case, and therefore specific legal advice should be sought with a lawyer.