A woman who returned her car only three days after buying it has lost her legal battle against Absa Bank. The Gauteng High Court in Johannesburg ruled that her dispute was with the dealership that sold the car, not with the bank that financed it.
The case involved Ms. Baloyi, who purchased a vehicle from CHM Group in Midrand through financing from Absa. According to the credit agreement, she was supposed to pay monthly instalments of R6,827 until August 2029. However, she never made a single payment on the loan.
When Absa took legal action to recover the vehicle and cancel the contract, Baloyi argued that she shouldn’t have to pay because the car was defective and the dealership had misled her. She claimed protection under the Consumer Protection Act (CPA), saying the vehicle had serious faults that forced her to return it.
But the court found that the CPA does not cover credit agreements governed by the National Credit Act. It ruled that Baloyi’s issues were with the dealership, not Absa. The bank had only financed the purchase—it was not responsible for the car’s condition.
At the time of the court case, Baloyi owed R127,195 in arrears, with a total outstanding balance of nearly R600,000. She insisted that Absa should have recovered the money from the dealership, but the court rejected this argument, saying her legal claim should be directed at the seller.
In the end, the judge sided with Absa, confirming the bank’s right to enforce the credit agreement and ruling that Baloyi must continue her payments despite returning the car.