Question 1
Debbie entered into a written contract to buy a second-hand Proton from Esther. The contract did not state the year of the car but Esther described it to Debbie as a 1997 model. In fact it was a 1995 Proton and was worth RM500 less than the price Debbie paid for it.
What remedies are open to Debbie?
Question 2
Cosmetics Sdn Bhd hired Karen to sell their products in Mont Kiara, a well to do residential area. Among others, some of the clauses in the contract read as follows:
‘it is a condition of this contract that Karen shall call on each house in Mont Kiara at least once a month.’
‘this contract shall remain in force for 2 years unless either party terminates it forthwith if the other party commits a material breach of the agreed obligations.’
Karen failed to call on 5 houses in Nov bec she was ill but she made a specific point of visiting them on 1 Dec. When Cosmetics Sdn Bhd discovered this, they wrote to her, ‘ terminating our contract because of your breach’.
Was Cosmetics entitled to terminate?
Question 3
Tom often travels to Malaysia using the bus service offered by Comfy Tours Pte Ltd (‘Comfy’). The following is the sequence of events preceding the issuing of the bus ticket to Tom at Comfy’s office:
(1) Tom informs Comfy’s ticketing officer, Jane, of his intended destination;
(2) Jane quotes Tom the fare;
(3) Tom pays cash;
(4) Jane issues Tom a machine printed ticket.
There are notices, containing identical terms of carriage, posted at Comfy’s office and on the back of the printed ticket.
Amongst the terms, there was an exclusion clause in red font and bold print which reads:
‘You agree that Comfy shall not be liable to you for any injury suffered by you as a passenger, arising from any acts or omissions of Comfy or their employees, whether those acts or omissions were negligent or otherwise.’
It turned out that Tom suffered a broken arm when the bus crashed. The accident was caused by the bus driver’s negligence.
Advise Tom whether the exclusion clause is effective to exclude Comfy’s liability should Tom sue Comfy for his injury.
