Chinaz Septoo obo J M Septoo & another v The Road Accident Fund

The appellant, Ms Chinaz Septoo, sued on behalf of herself and her minor children for loss of support following the death of her husband, who was the sole breadwinner. The deceased died in a single‑vehicle motor accident in which he was the driver and solely negligent. The appellant and her minor child were passengers in the vehicle and had already successfully claimed general damages and future medical expenses from the Road Accident Fund (RAF) for their own injuries. In a separate action, the appellant claimed damages from the RAF for loss of support arising from the death of the breadwinner.

The appeal was dismissed. Each party was ordered to pay its own costs.

This case confirms and clarifies that dependants cannot claim loss of support from the Road Accident Fund where the deceased breadwinner was solely negligent in causing his own death. It reaffirms the delictual foundation of RAF claims, the requirement of wrongfulness, and the limits of judicial development of the common law in this context, providing certainty to RAF litigation and dependants’ actions.