Stating that the amendment not only radically reduced the benefits that RAF paid to road traffic accident victims, the Law Society of South Africa – LSSA has added that it also deprived them of their right to claim for compensation.
“If the application for direct access is granted, the appeal will be heard then and there,” said Jacqui Sohn, chairwoman of the LSSA’s road accident fund committee.
Each month, about 20,000 people become the victim of a road traffic accident.
The Road Accident Fund Act of 1996 came into effect in August 2008 having been changed by the Road Accident Fund Amendment Act of 2005.
Before the amendment came into effect, motorists and public carriers were liable for the full compensation of their passengers for the injuries sustained and subsequent damages.
It is for this reason that many motorists and public carriers carried readily obtainable and affordable insurance, which provided coverage for such risk.
Now, says Sohn, they have been completely absolved from any financial liability to the victim in terms of the Amendment Act.
Ten other applicants have joined the LSSA in its petition to the Constitutional Court.
“Victims of other recklessness such as hospital negligence, train accidents, airplane crashes… can all claim for compensation for personal injuries suffered by them from the person at fault.
“Victims of road accidents can no longer do so, even if the reckless wrongdoer is the wealthy driver of a luxury car or a profitable bus company,” Sohn added.
WORLD- renowned opera singer has launched an international battle for compensation based on a claim that his career was ruined following a terrifying accident.
David Montague-Rendall from Hampshire is claiming £250,000 for loss of earnings since the terrifying accident, which occurred when part of a two-tier set collapsed on top of him at the Copenhagen Opera House.
Having fallen about 15ft, Mr Montague-Rendall shattered his left hip and damaged both shoulders, but managed to crawl to safety, thus avoiding being crushed.
Despite making stage appearances since the accident, the 61-year-old from Brockenhurst says that bookings had dried up because opera companies were in doubt over his ability to achieve similar high standards. He held his last performance two years ago.
Mr Montague-Rendall is now suing the Danish Ministry of Culture, who are the owners of the theatre.
“During the performance two stage levels were raised to give the impression that I was underground in a tomb,” the singer said.
“On the night in question the stage above went sideways instead of up, resulting in the destruction of the set. I was knocked down at least 15 feet and tried to crawl to safety to avoid being crushed.”
Showered in debris after the accident, Mr Montague-Rendall has now instructed Irwin Mitchell, an international law firm to pursue his claim for compensation.
A spokesman for Irwin Mitchell said: “The lost earnings for an opera singer of our client’s stature are considerable. Although he’s received some recompense it’s insignificant considering the fact that his career has been ruined and he’s been forced to sell his house.
“The Danish Ministry of Culture has admitted liability but refuses to acknowledge the extent of the damage caused.
“Mr Montague-Rendall’s case will now be heard in a Danish court, where we will continue to fight for justice on behalf of our client.”
The singer was performing in the opera Aida as principal tenor in April 2005 when the accident occurred.
During the months following his fall, Mr Montague-Rendall underwent a hip replacement, a subsequent knee joint replacement and extensive shoulder surgery.
In 2008, Mr Montague-Rendall and his wife Diana were served a noise abatement notice by the New Forest District Council, after neighbours complained about the sound made by their outdoor swimming pool heating equipment.
Having lodged an appeal, the notice against the couple was subsequently withdrawn.
A lorry driver who drove into a sozzled reveller is having a personal injury claim brought against him on the grounds that the trucker should have realised that he was drunk. South Croydon reveller Carl Heaven has filed a claim for an “unlimited” amount of money in damages from Brian Williams and Containerlift Services after suffering multiple broken bones. This was after he was hit by the back of the 44 tonne lorry being driven by Mr. Heaven.
Mr. Williams, a plumber is claiming that he was hindered from returning to work for over seven months as a result of the pain from his injuries. Mr. Heaven’s team of lawyers argue that Mr. Williams should have realised “given the time of night and their appearance”, the plumber and his friend “were likely to be drunk and likely to behave unpredictably”.
Mr. Heaven’s solicitors contend that he should have “stopped completely or reduced his speed to a point where he was almost stationary”, so he could observe the pair of revellers using his wing mirrors. The legal team also added that the trucker should have realised the probability that his rear wheels could have collided with Mr Heaven.
At the time of the accident, Mr. Heaven, a 32-year-old plumber and his friend were both drunk on the High Street in Abingdon, Oxon at about 2.45am on June 20, 2007.
An employee at the Essex-based Containerlift Services, Mr. Williams was at the time of the accident taking a left turn from Bridge Street into the High Street. According to the police statement, this is when he says he saw the revellers “larking around” in the middle of the road.
After “waving” at Mr. Williams, a resident of the Isle of Wight, the revellers moved on to the kerb on the left side of the road, as the trucker drove past them. Mr. Heaven then claims that the back wheels of the lorry caught him and dragged him “a significant distance” along the road, leaving him with injuries including a broken left arm in three places, a broken right arm and right leg.
Having filed his personal injury claim on June 18 this year, Mr. Heaven could win damages worth thousands of pounds.
A date for the case to be heard has not yet been set.