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Former TN boss sues Zimoco for $76 000

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Harare businessman and lawyer Tawanda Nyambirai has approached the High Court seeking $76 700 in damages against Isoquant Investments, trading as Zimoco, for allegedly damaging his Mercedes-Benz S600 engine after presenting it for repairs.

Harare businessman and lawyer Tawanda Nyambirai has approached the High Court seeking $76 700 in damages against Isoquant Investments, trading as Zimoco, for allegedly damaging his Mercedes-Benz S600 engine after presenting it for repairs.

BY CHARLES LAIDTON

Nyambirai has also taken to court Defrazer Investments, which trades as Uneek Autos, over the same matter, claiming the vehicle was supposed to be attended to by both Uneek Autos and Zimoco.

According to Nyambirai, in or about October 2013, he engaged Uneek Autos to supply and fit a brand new engine on his Mercedes-Benz vehicle and to repair and service the same.

But, in breach of the agreement between the parties, Nyambirai said: “First defendant (Uneek Autos) supplied and fitted an engine that was not in good working order, alternatively, first defendant did not fit the engine and repair and service the motor vehicle in good workmanlike manner.”

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Nyambirai further said in April 2014, he engaged Zimoco to repair the motor vehicle and correct the work that Uneek Autos had done. The express or implied terms of the agreement between the parties, Nyambirai said, were that Zimoco would work with Uneek Autos “to prevent the trading of accusations between the firms and to ensure that the engine warrantee conditions were complied with”.

However, Nyambirai said Zimoco allegedly breached the agreement in that it did not consult Uneek Autos, but damaged the engine by substituting some of the engine parts with damaged and corroded parts.

“Second defendant (Zimoco) violated the conditions of the engine warrantee, and did not comply with best practice in doing its work and did not do its work in a good and workmanlike manner,” he said.

“As a result of the breach of the first and second defendants duty of care, plaintiff has suffered damages as follows: $76 752 being the cost of buying and installing a new engine . . . and $400 per day from March 1, 2014, to the date of payment of damages, being damages suffered by plaintiff from the deprivation of the use and enjoyment of his motor vehicle.”

In response to the claims, Uneek Autos, through its lawyer Norman Mugiya, dismissed the claims, saying it was not responsible for the damages made to Nyambirai’s engine, and blamed Zimoco for the alleged mess.

Zimoco, however, also distanced itself from the claims, saying when the engine was brought for repairs, it had already been damaged by Uneek Autos.

“Second defendant denies damaging the engine and puts the plaintiff to strict proof thereof. It is, in fact, accepted by the plaintiff that even after the purported placement of new engine by first defendant, the vehicle still had faults. He brought the engine to second defendant because first defendant had failed him,” Zimoco said.

The matter is still pending.