Legal Articles and Guides

Motorist Geoffrey Merrick was handed down a three-year prison sentence for killing a cyclist in a hit-and-run in 2013 in what has been described as a landmark ruling, says a report on the IoL site. The Kuilsriver Magistrate’s Court also suspended Merrick’s driver’s licence for six months. In May 2013, Merrick crashed into Dr Koos Roux, who was cycling with his son. Merrick fled the scene. Police arrested him 10 days later when debris found on the scene matched his car.

The twenty-year sentence for three counts of culpable homicide, reckless driving and driving under the influence handed down by Magistrate Anand Maharaj to Kriesen Moodley in the Durban Regional Court this week has been welcomed by Justice Project South Africa (JPSA).

The National Funeral Practitioners Association of SA‚ comprising about 300 members‚ said that parlours have had to shut their doors since the RAF introduced a panel of preferred undertakers to conduct the funerals of accident victims. According to a TimesLIVE report association secretary-general Nkosentsha Shezi said: ‘When a family has claimed from RAF for the funeral of a relative that has died in an accident‚ the fund gives the family two choices – you either take the funeral parlour that we are going to give you or you conduct the funeral using a parlour of your choice but we are not going to pay for your claim.’

Sending out a stern message to drunk drivers, a Durban Regional Court magistrate has given a young man who caused an accident in which three people died a 20-year prison sentence. According to a News24 report Magistrate Anand Maharaj, passing sentence on Kriesen Moodley (24), said: ‘We need sentences that can have the effect of changing the mind-set of such drivers who become lethal weapons.’

A Cape Town car dealership has been ordered to refund a woman who bought a second-hand car in late 2015, only to have it break down a few days later. The National Consumer Tribunal found that Hanlie van Lill, of Kuilsriver, must be paid back the R61 450 she paid for her 2001 year model Volkswagen Passat, which broke down four days after she bought it, notes a Fin24 report.

A Wesselsbron woman must keep her opinions on Toyota SA to herself, Judge Corné van Zyl has ruled, issuing a prohibiting order in the Free State High Court. According to a News24 report, Elmarie Wepener (53) may not publish defamatory comments, threaten or harass Toyota employees or interfere with Toyota's operations, said Van Zyl.

A young boy who suffered a head injury after being knocked down by a car in November 2006 has been let down by the law after his attorney first accepted a paltry Road Accident Fund settlement and then apparently stole the money. A News24 report says while the fund considers the matter closed, new lawyers are now attempting to make good and reopen the case to secure a better payout for the child.

Forensic investigators at the RAF handed over 707 cases to the police after discovering fraud caused either by staff or illegal claims made by the SA public in the 2016/17 financial year. A Daily Dispatch report says in the last three months in the Eastern Cape, seven cases have been referred to police from 153 complaints received by the RAF, 109 of which have already been finalised and closed during the period to the value of more than R147m.

The Road Traffic Management Corporation has welcomed a sentence handed down to a motorist guilty of reckless‚ negligent and inconsiderate driving, says a TimesLIVE report. The Cullinan Magistrate’s Court sentenced Olayori Abdul Bakare to a fine of R10 000 or two years imprisonment. His driver's licence was suspended for five years.

Uber SA has called for an urgent ministerial meeting to address the on-going war between its partner drivers and the traditional metered taxi industry, especially in Gauteng. A Cape Times report says this comes after an Uber driver-partner, Lindelani Mashau, died on Monday after suffering serious burn wounds. Mashau was in his car when it was set alight – allegedly by metered taxi drivers – outside Loftus Versfeld in Pretoria over a month ago.

The Road Accident Fund is a state-supported insurance fund that provides cover to all road users in South Africa in the event of a road accident. If someone is injured or killed in a motor vehicle accident because one of the drivers was negligent, they or their loved ones can lodge a claim with the Road Accident Fund (RAF). This means that even if the driver of the car doesn't have insurance, people injured in the accident (or the loved ones of people killed in the accident) can get money from the fund to help pay medical expenses and to compensate for wages they may have lost as a result of the accident.

The Eastern Cape High Court (Grahamstown) has granted the Eastern Cape Roads and Public Works Department leave to appeal a far-reaching judgment allowing farmers to fix their own damaged dirt roads and then bill the government, says a Daily Dispatch report. In March the court ordered the department to immediately begin implementing plans to repair and maintain its extensive and largely dysfunctional rural road network.

Albert Venter, the brains behind the ‘new car for only R699 per month’ scheme, is losing his Pretoria house after Standard Bank obtained judgment of R7.8m against him. According to a report in Rapport the property is up for sale. The scheme left thousands of motorists with problems when advertising revenue for advertisements placed on the cars was not forthcoming.

The chairperson of the cash-strapped Road Accident Fund is said to have pushed for a ‘consolation prize’ candidate who ‘lacks technical skill’ to head up the organisation rather than a higher scoring candidate who he felt was ‘too strong’. Chairman Ntuthuko Bhengu is also accused in court papers of making unilateral decisions without input from board members‚ in the latest controversy to rock the beleaguered fund, notes a TimesLIVE report.

The owner of the truck that crashed into several vehicles on Field’s Hill in 2013 killing 24 people has entered into a plea agreement with the state that will see him avoid jail time. According to a report on the IoL site, Gregory Govender, the owner of Sagekal Logistics, will, under the plea and sentence agreement, pay a combined fine of R25 000.