updated: 05-Feb-10
It seems you are not even safe from road accidents in your own yard. This is what Ethel Kekana* (41) discovered when she was knocked down in a freak accident on her property in Alexandra.
he accident occurred on 3 February 2007 at 9pm. Ethel was standing behind her garden gate, minding her own business, when a vehicle suddenly reversed forcefully into her driveway.
Such was the car’s speed that it hit the gate hard and pinned her between the gate and the garage. This unusual accident left her with a fractured pelvis and fractured arm, joint damage and urological problems including incontinence.
This was clearly a case of being in the wrong place at the wrong time. But beyond the element of unfortunate coincidence surrounding the accident, the reality was that as a self-employed food vendor, these injuries seriously compromised Ethel’s ability to work.
In instituting a claim against the Road Accident Fund (RAF), she engaged the services of de Broglio Inc, a law firm that handles RAF claims on a contingency basis. This benefits accident victims who are not well off, because no win means no fee.
De Broglio and the Fund eventually settled on an amount of R600 000 to cover Ethel’s medical bills, loss of earnings and general damages.
*Names have been changed to protect client confidentiality
Case results depend upon a variety of factors unique to each case. Case results do not guarantee or predict a similar result in any future case.