P B v Road Accident Fund ((25/2/2020) [2020] ZAMPMBHC 1; Roelofse AJ (12 March 2020)

Parties

Procedural Posture

Civil Trial / Judgment After Trial

Legal Issues

1. 1 Whether the plaintiff proved a loss of income as a result of injuries sustained in the motor vehicle accident.
2. 2 Whether the plaintiff proved that he farmed with chickens prior to the accident and earned income from that enterprise.
3. 3 What is the appropriate quantum of damages for past and future loss of income, considering the apportionment of liability.

Ratio Decidendi

The court found that the plaintiff failed to prove, on a balance of probabilities, that he farmed with chickens and earned income from that enterprise prior to the accident, due to the absence of corroborating evidence. The expert reports relied on the plaintiff's uncorroborated account. The court accepted that the plaintiff's injuries rendered him a vulnerable employee and an unequal competitor in the labour market, justifying compensation for past and future loss of income. The actuarial calculation was adjusted to exclude the unproven farming income, using only the plaintiff's formal employment income as the basis. The final quantum was apportioned according to the admitted negligence...

Court Disposition

Plaintiff partially succeeds; awarded damages for loss of income based on formal employment only, with apportionment for contributory negligence.

Orders

• The defendant is ordered to pay the plaintiff an amount of R 565,821.00 plus interest at a rate of 10% per annum, calculated daily, reckoned from the date of summons to the date of payment, both days included.
• The defendant shall indemnify the plaintiff for all of the plaintiff’s future medical expenses associated with the injuries sustained in the motor vehicle accident on 20 January 2017.