A Maseru woman has taken her mechanic to the Matala Local Court, demanding M7100 that she paid him to repair her vehicle.
Mathuso Tatolo, 44, told the court this week that she took her car to Mojalefa Maepe, 34, on August 28, 2024, to install a new gearbox.
Tatolo said she paid Maepe M6400 for the gearbox, M500 for oil, and M200 for a car board. However, three days after getting her car back, Tatolo discovered it wouldn’t reverse. She said she then contacted Maepe, but he allegedly failed to inspect the vehicle.
Frustrated by this, Tatolo reported the matter to Lithabaneng police on December 22, 2024.
During a meeting at the station the following day, Maepe agreed in the presence of the police that he had sold the gearbox and promised to fix the car within a week.
Tatolo further told the court that on January 4, 2025, Maepe came to her house and removed the valve body, but never returned it.
Her plea to the court was that Maepe return her M7100 as the vehicle was never properly fixed.
She also sought M700 compensation for court fees, M500 witness expenses, and another M500 for transport and airtime.
A witness for Tatolo, Paseka Mphohle, corroborated her account. He stated that Tatolo sought police intervention after Maepe failed multiple times to fix her car.
Mphohle said the police had advised Tatolo to take the matter to court.
In his defence, Maepe said that in August last year, Tatolo asked to buy his gearbox for M5500. After installing and fixing it, other minor issues surfaced when he took the car for a rest drive, resulting in its sump breaking.
Maepe noted that after he repaired the sump, Tatolo collected the car but claimed she had forgotten how to drive, so his colleague accompanied her home. She later called to confirm her safe arrival and even gave his colleague some money.
Maepe also admitted that in December last year, Tatolo called about the car not reversing. He intended to check it but couldn’t due to being busy. He then received a call from Tatolo saying she no longer needed his help.
Subsequently, he was summoned to the Lithabaneng police station, initially accused of stealing Tatolo’s car computer box, which was later clarified as the gearbox sale. He agreed to help diagnose the reversing issue.
In January 2025, Maepe identified the valve body as the problem. While searching for a replacement at auto recyclers, he received the first court summons, where he was found not guilty of failing to fix the car. He then received the current summons demanding M7100.
Maepe maintained he owed Tatolo nothing as he had installed a working gearbox.
But in her concluding remarks, Tatolo insisted on the refund and compensation for damages incurred while opening the case and supporting her witness.
Matala Local Court court president Mathuso Ntlobo ruled against Tatolo, stating that she failed to adequately justify her claim.
