Does my daughter has a claim?
A friend of my daughter was driving her motor vehicle and another person drove into the back of her car.
The insurance wrote the car off and has paid her out. However, she had to pay the excess of R5000-00. The amount paid out by the insurance was of course not enough for her to replace the vehicle which was only just fully paid up two weeks previously.
She has had to buy a new car which has put her into debt all over again.
Can she claim the R5000-00 excess and is there any recourse for the additional costs incurred in replacing the vehicle from the person driving her car?
Category: Civil Matters, Damages
Region: South Africa, Gauteng
1 Answer
Hello. Nothing prevents your daughter from legally claiming her losses from whoever was at fault. She will have to sue to be put back in the same position she was in had it not been for the accident. That will be the damages suffered. I suggest you find out the book value of the car before the accident. Her loss will be the amount received from the insurance company deducted from the book value. The deficit plus the excess paid, and any other cost will be her damages. If it’s 15000 or less she should go to the small claims court to institute a civil claim against both the driver of the car and the other party. There is no need for lawyers in a small claims court. A commissioner will hear the case and decide who was at fault and how the blame should be apportioned if necessary. If the amount is over 15000 she will have to get a lawyer to sue in the civil section of the Magistrates court. She can also limit her claim to 15000 or less in order to keep it within the jurisdiction of a small claims court. She should first write a letter to the person who damaged the car demanding payment. If she does not get paid then she should proceed as advised.