Trucker wins liability case against Sapo

Alan Peat THE CONTENTIOUS clause in the Durban port regulations Ð the "enter at your own risk" stipulation from the port authorities Ð has been legally challenged, and judicially rejected. The clause Ð effectively allowing SA Port Operations (Sapo) to opt out of liability for those entering the container terminal Ð has been strongly challenged by the harbour carriers for some time. And one of them, Springbok Trucking, finally challenged the legality of the clause in court. "The straddle carriers had caused R15-20 000 damage to a number of our vehicles over a period," said Springbok director Bruce Grey. "We claimed for it, but they rejected our claims. "They hid behind the clause, but I decided to challenge this in court." Grey totally rejected this "enter at your own risk" policy. "This was total," he said. "So if they happened to kill an employee of yours they're not responsible? "I wonder what the Department of Manpower would say about that." Grey is also disturbed by the monopolistic element in the equation. "It's not as though there's a choice," he said. "We're forced to go in there so they've got to be responsible." And that is what the court has found. What will this mean for the truckers? "All it means is that if they're negligent they must be liable. "How do you opt out of that anyway?" It is not known if the port authorities intend to appeal against this finding.