Johannesburg - A majority of Gauteng motorists looking to make claims for damages to their vehicles as a result of poor road conditions are unlikely to see their claims processed according to the DA.
This after Gauteng Roads and Transport MEC Ismail Vadi revealed that the settlement of motorists' claims amounted to only R567 381 out of R4 048 599 in total claims over the past 3 years.
This meant that only about one in every eight claims were settled, the DA alleged.
The party, in a statement, on Monday revealed that for the 2017/18 year thus far, there were 39 claims in dispute to the value of R667 060.
“Unfortunately, in total and independent of time, there are 322 cases before the courts with claim values of R7 322 952.”
“In Gauteng it is common for all but the most obviously indefensible claims to be repudiated which costs the department, and ultimately taxpayers, even more in legal fees when the cases go against the department.”
The party added that while it was important for taxpayers’ money to be protected from fraudsters, the vast majority of the claims were brought by people with genuine grounds for damages.
Furthermore, the high cost of litigation often discouraged these honest claimants, “because prosecuting a claim requires time off work and financial resources to engage a lawyer”.