Disputes Tribunal of New Zealand

Negligence / Applicant claimed she was driving on road when Respondent pulled out of a side road without giving way / Respondent’s vehicle collided with Applicant’s vehicle causing damage / Respondent left the scene without stopping / Applicant brought claim to recover losses incurred in the accident / Held: intersection was controlled by a give way sign / Respondent failed to give way and was therefore liable in negligence for losses incurred / Actual cost to repair vehicle was $575.00 / Respondent ordered to pay $575.00 / Claim allowed.

Negligence / Applicant’s vehicle was hit by Respondent’s vehicle at a roundabout / Applicant claimed $3,252.34 for damage caused and cost to hire a private investigator to obtain Respondent’s address / Held: Respondent was in lane designated for a right turn only, but turned left into Applicant’s vehicle, causing damage / Repair cost was $3,464.84 / Respondent had agreed to cost and made $500.00 payment / Respondent liable for balance of $2,964.84 / Respondent’s conduct in giving Applicant an incorrect address had delayed proceedings /  Applicant entitled to claim cost incurred of hiring private investigator ($287.50) so proceedings could be brought to Tribunal / Respondent ordered to pay $3,252.34 / Claim allowed.

Negligence / Applicant attended Respondent’s site to carry out work / Applicant was directed to park in a particular spot while unloading their tools / While parked, a concrete aggregator inadvertently overloaded and spilt its content onto Applicant’s vehicle, causing damage / Applicant’s insurer claimed $7,776.07 for repair costs / At hearing, Respondent questioned whether Applicant had parked at the spot longer than it took them to unload tools / Held: Applicant was told where to park by Respondent’s manager / No specific timeframe for unloading tools was given / Respondent had duty of care to protect Applicant from foreseeable risks of harm / Duty was breached when aggregator was overloaded / Damage caused by the spillage of aggregate was a reasonably foreseeable consequence of overloading aggregator / Respondent liable for reasonable costs of repairing damage to Applicant’s vehicle / Respondent order to pay $7,776.07 / Claim allowed.

Negligence / Applicant was driving along rural road and came across cows on the road / Applicant pulled her vehicle towards middle of road  and employed hazard lights to warn traffic coming from opposite direction to avoid hitting the cows / Respondent was driving from opposite direction and did not see Applicant’s vehicle, and collision occurred / Applicant and insurer claimed $796.65 for repairs / Held: witness evidence indicated that the Respondent would have had restricted visibility before collision occurred / Respondent did not breach his duty of care to Applicant / Respondent could not reasonably have been expected to see Applicant’s car with sufficient time to stop his vehicle before collision / Claim dismissed.

Negligence / Personal injury / Accident Compensation Act 2001 / Applicant claimed dog scratched her vehicle / Applicant brought dog inside to wait for Respondent / Another dog came into café, causing Respondent’s dog to rip leash out of Applicant’s hand, injuring her / Applicant claimed Respondent agreed to pay to repair scratches in her car’s paintwork / Respondent claimed there had been a muddy mark on Applicant’s car, and that she offered to pay for a cut and polish / Applicant and her insurer claimed $5,643.63 for repairs / Held: Applicant failed to prove scratches on car were done by Respondent’s dog and were not pre-existing / Applicant entitled to cut and polish as promised by Respondent / $250 reasonable amount for that task / ACC has exclusive jurisdiction over personal injury claims, so Tribunal unable to hear claim relating to Applicant’s injury / Respondent ordered to pay $250.00 / Claim allowed in part.

Negligence / Parties were involved in a vehicle collision at a roundabout / Respondent entered roundabout and crossed path of Applicant’s vehicle as she exited roundabout / Respondent claimed Applicant had not been indicating correctly / Applicant and her insurer claimed $4560.69 for damage to her vehicle / Held: Respondent caused collision by failing to give way to her right / Respondent liable for repair costs incurred by Applicant’s insurer / Respondent ordered to pay $4560.69 / Claim allowed.

Negligence / Applicant’s vehicle was stationary at give way sign when Respondent’s vehicle turned from intersecting road and hit Applicant’s car / Applicant and insurer claimed Respondent was at fault and sought recovery of losses suffered of $5752.75 / Held: crash occurred because Respondent did not make his turn with enough clearance of give way road marking where Applicant was stationary / Costs sought were fair and reasonable / Respondent ordered to pay Applicant’s insurer $5752.75 / Claim granted.

Negligence / Parties were at a speedway / While starting to drive off Respondent’s vehicle showered gravel on Applicant’s vehicle /  Applicant’s vehicle was damaged / Applicant claimed $4,224.10 for cost of repairs / Held: Respondent was negligent / Respondent breached his duty of care to the Applicant by his actions / Respondent caused extensive damage to Applicant’s vehicle / Respondent ordered to pay Applicant's insurer $4,224.10 / Claim allowed.

Negligence / Vicarious liability / Applicant purchased wine barrels from Respondent / Respondent’s staff member assisted with carrying the barrels to Applicant’s vehicle and loading them / Applicant claimed barrel slipped and scratched his bumper / Applicant sought $773.38 for repairs / Respondent claimed it was a “joint lift”, it was Applicant’s side that slipped and it was not intentional nor careless by the staff member / Respondent paid half of Applicant’s repair invoice ($386.69) on the basis the Applicant shared the blame for damage / Held: no evidence Respondent’s staff member breached his duty of care / Respondent not vicariously liable for damage / Claim dismissed.

Tort / Negligence / Applicant and Respondent parked opposite each other in carpark / As they both went to leave, their vehicles came into contact / Applicant claimed $2,119.99 for damages caused to their car / Held: evidence inconclusive to establish Respondent caused the damage to the Applicant’s car / Claim dismissed.

Negligence / Bus owned by Applicant was travelling down road when Respondent opened his car door into path of bus, causing damage to both vehicles / Respondent denied causing accident, claimed bus was speeding and driving too close to parked cars / Held: evidence showed bus was not speeding or driving too close to cars / Respondent did not check if road was clear before opening car door / Respondent breached duty of care by failing to pay adequate attention to oncoming traffic / Damage to Applicant’s bus was direct result of Respondent’s negligence / Respondent ordered to pay $2,170.63 for repairs / Claim allowed.

Insurance / Property / Motor vehicle collision involving three drivers / Applicant claimed $7,036 for losses suffered because of vehicle being uneconomic to repair / Second Respondent counter-claimed $9,000 pre-accident value of his vehicle / Held: not proven that First Respondent entered Second Respondent’s lane / Not proven that First Respondent is liable in negligence / Second Respondent liable for resulting damage to Applicant’s vehicle / Second Respondent ordered to pay Applicant’s Insurer $7,036 / Claim against First Respondent dismissed / Claim against Second Respondent allowed.

Negligence / Land Transport Act 1988 / Land Transport (Road User) Rule 2004 / Parties involved in road collision when Respondent tried to move into lane in which Applicant was travelling / Both vehicles were damaged / Applicant and his insurer claimed $2,858.19 from Respondent for cost of repairs to Applicant’s ute / Held: Respondent failed to give way and moved from his lane without due care / Respondent breached duty as driver to take care not to harm anyone else’s property, and was responsible for damage caused / Respondent ordered to pay Applicant’s insurer $2,858.19 / Claim allowed.