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GEORGE TOWN: The Penang Consumers Association (CAP) has welcomed the court decision to award damages to a man injured in an accident involving a pothole, saying this should encourage other equally injured people to sue the government for negligence. .
The head of CAP’s complaints office, Ravinder Singh, advised victims of such accidents to start filing their claims and urged lawyers to provide their services free of charge to those who cannot afford them.
He was commenting on the Shah Alam High Court award of RM48,700 to a Pakistani national after finding that the Department of Public Works (JKR) was negligent in maintaining a road under its jurisdiction. The claimant suffered injuries after his motorcycle hit a pothole in Jalan Kuala Selangor in 2014.
Speaking to FMT, Ravinder also said that those who sustain personal injury or vehicle damage in future accidents involving potholes should first file police reports. “Then find an attorney to file your claims, either against JKR or a local government.”
The co-chair of the Criminal Lawyers Committee, Muhammad Rafique Rashid Ali, said in a press release that the law allowed government agencies to be sued for failure to maintain roads, railways, bridges and bridges.
He cited the landmark case of Raymond Chea against JKR in the Court of Appeals in 2018, in which it was found that JKR was negligent in failing to repair a pothole in Jalan Perusahaan, Bukit Minyak, Penang, in a reasonable time despite knowing it.
The complainant, a motorcyclist, was thrown off his motorcycle after going through two potholes at the same time, sustaining injuries.
“In the end result,” Rafique said, “anyone who is injured in a pothole accident can sue the competent authority for negligence and breach of legal duty by failing to maintain such public roads.
“Whether the claim will be successful or not is a completely different matter. Of course, the competent authority responsible for road maintenance must first be determined, be it the local government, the state government or the federal government. “
Another attorney, Lim Wei Jiet, said accident victims had up to three years to file negligent acts that did not involve personal injury. Those who suffer personal injuries can do so within six years.
Last Sunday, the Minister of Science, Technology and Innovation, Khairy Jamaluddin, hit a pothole while riding a bicycle. He was thrown from the bicycle and was injured in the face.
JKR acted quickly to repair the pothole, prompting netizens to claim that a double standard was in play as many complaints about other potholes had gone unaddressed.
Since then, the Ministry of Public Works has said that it would resubmit its pledge “Aku Janji Zero Potholes” (Zero Potholes Promise). He promised to fill in the potholes immediately, saying he had allocated 1.09 billion ringgit for road maintenance in 2021.
