Hendrie v Rusli

[2000] WASCA 249

Western Australia Court of Appeal

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Interrogate

Catchwords

1. Damages
2. › Personal injuries
3. › Non-pecuniary loss
4. › Proportion of most extreme case
5. › Assessment of severity
6. › Whether 20 per cent assessment within acceptable range
7. › Motor Vehicle (Third Party Insurance) Act 1943 (WA), s 3C
1. Damages
2. › Personal injuries
3. › Gratuitous services
4. › Past and future
5. › Threshold for award
6. › Whether $5,000 threshold is annual or applies to total award
7. › Motor Vehicle (Third Party Insurance) Act 1943 (WA), s 3D(6), (7)
1. Damages
2. › Personal injuries
3. › Gratuitous services
4. › Assessment of need
5. › Discount for services that would have been required in any event
6. › Whether 50 per cent discount excessive
7. › Motor Vehicle (Third Party Insurance) Act 1943 (WA), s 3D
1. Appeal
2. › Assessment of damages
3. › Appellate intervention
4. › Whether award so inadequate as to fall below bounds of sound discretionary judgment

Quick Take

The $5,000 threshold in s 3D(6) and (7) of the Motor Vehicle (Third Party Insurance) Act 1943 (WA) applies to the total award for gratuitous services, not as an annual threshold. A 50% discount for the contingency that an elderly plaintiff would have required domestic services in any event may be excessive where the plaintiff was fit and active before the accident and had family longevity; 30% was held appropriate in such circumstances.