BMW Financial Services has lost a court bid to repossess a vehicle from Ndlangisa Funeral Services CC and its sole member, Lungisani Ndlangiso, after the KZN High Court (Pietermaritzburg) found that the financial services company’s actions weren’t fair.

IoL reports that Ndlangiso, on behalf of his company, bought a car from BMW and then seemingly defaulted on the payments, causing the car maker’s financial services unit to repossess the car.

However, BMW filed some of its paperwork to repossess the car eight months late, after the initial court matter to get summary judgement against Ndlangiso started, which it said was because it couldn’t get the relevant person to sign the document because the deponent was ‘based in another province, causing a logistical delay'. 

‘The explanation is that the affidavit had been timeously commissioned in Gauteng, but delays arose due to the deponent’s availability and physical transmission to KZN for filing,’ the ruling said.

The judge found that BMW’s delay was reasonably explained, and the time frame was ‘minimal’.

‘Importantly, the application was electronically served within time,’ the court noted.

However, where the judge took umbrage with the matter was that BMW’s late filing could only be condoned if it had a reasonable chance of success in repossessing the car, which it didn’t.

IoL notes that the court noted that the arrears had already been paid by the time BMW applied for summary judgment, and that the company had continued to accept monthly instalments.

On this basis, the judge found that BMW had effectively affirmed the agreement.

‘Against this backdrop, I find that BMW’s insistence on return of the vehicle despite having received the arrears is neither equitable nor in the public interest,’ the court said in its ruling.

Full IoL report

See also full report in The Star

Judgment