P.M.M v Road Accident Fund (873/2019) [2024] ZALMPPHC 152 (24 October 2024)

Parties

Procedural Posture

Civil Trial / Quantum Determination After Separation of Merits and Quantum

Legal Issues

1. 1 Whether the plaintiff proved her claim for past and future loss of earnings on a balance of probabilities.
2. 2 Whether the expert reports and affidavits relied upon by the plaintiff were properly commissioned and admissible.
3. 3 Whether the discrepancies in expert evidence and lack of documentary proof undermine the plaintiff's quantum claim.

Ratio Decidendi

The plaintiff failed to discharge the burden of proof for her claim for past and future loss of earnings. The expert reports and affidavits relied upon were not properly commissioned before a commissioner of oaths, rendering them inadmissible or of minimal weight. Significant discrepancies between the expert reports, lack of documentary evidence of pre-accident income, and reliance on hearsay further undermined the credibility and probative value of the expert evidence. The court found that the actuarial calculations were based on unverified and inconsistent information, and the industrial psychologist's reports were not objective or reliable. Consequently, the plaintiff's claim for loss...

Court Disposition

Plaintiff's claim for past and future loss of earnings is dismissed. Defendant to furnish an undertaking for future medical expenses. Claim for general damages postponed sine die. No order as to costs.

Orders

• The Defendant shall furnish Plaintiff with an undertaking in terms of section 17(4)(a) of the Road Accident Fund Act, 56 of 1996, in respect of future medical, hospital and related expenses.
• The Plaintiff’s claim for general damages is postponed sine die.