Maxwell Ndebele v Road Accident Fund

The applicant, Maxwell Ndebele, was injured as a pedestrian in a motor vehicle collision on 19 December 2019 while he was still a minor. Liability for the accident was conceded by the Road Accident Fund on 13 April 2022. The injuries pleaded were a fracture of the right clavicle and multiple abrasions. The plaintiff initially claimed past medical expenses, future medical expenses, future loss of income, and general damages. At the commencement of the hearing, the claims for past medical expenses and general damages were abandoned. The remaining issues before the court were future medical expenses and future loss of income. Medico-legal reports were placed before court by agreement in terms of Rule 38(2).

The defendant was ordered to pay the plaintiff R500 000 for impairment of earning capacity, to furnish an undertaking in terms of section 17(4)(a) of the Road Accident Fund Act for future medical expenses, and to pay the plaintiff’s party-and-party costs, including medico-legal reports and counsel’s fees on scale B.

The case is significant for reaffirming South African principles on the evaluation of expert evidence in RAF matters and clarifying that a lack of actuarial quantification does not preclude compensation for impairment of earning capacity. It illustrates the court’s discretionary power to award a lump sum where future loss cannot be precisely calculated, particularly in cases involving minors.