A Hammanskraal man has approached the National Consumer Commission after Cartrack rejected his claim, with the dispute raising fresh questions about contract terms and what consumers are told when they sign up, Cape {town} Etc reports.
When Ofentse Vinjwa’s car was stolen in Hammanskraal, Tshwane, in June, he expected the Cartrack warranty attached to his service to provide some financial protection if the vehicle could not be recovered. Instead, his R150 000 claim was rejected.
According to TimesLive, the 36-year-old has now taken his complaint to the National Consumer Commission (NCC), arguing that important conditions of his agreement were not properly explained when he signed up.
Vinjwa says Cartrack initially pointed to more than one reason for rejecting the claim, including his failure to test the tracking device every three months and missed payments.
‘They said I did not test if the [tracking] device was working every three months. They also said I was inconsistent with my payments.’
– Ofentse Vinjwa
Vinjwa joined Cartrack in May 2025. He says he was not made aware of all the conditions governing the warranty when the agreement was concluded. According to him, the full terms and conditions were sent after the purchase had already been completed.
‘They did not explain the terms to me at the time of sale.’
– Ofentse Vinjwa
After losing an appeal against the rejection, Vinjwa turned to the NCC for assistance. The dispute comes against the backdrop of a wider regulatory battle between Cartrack and consumers.
In March 2026, the National Consumer Tribunal confirmed a settlement between the NCC and Cartrack after the commission received complaints from 210 consumers. Cartrack agreed to pay a R5 million administrative fine, refund more than R5.1 million to affected consumers, cancel certain contracts without cancellation fees and amend its terms and conditions.
The settlement covered 167 complaints and was reached without an admission of liability by Cartrack. The NCC said some of the company’s sale-agreement terms had been inconsistent with the Consumer Protection Act.
Among the issues identified by the commission were terms it considered excessively one-sided, misleading conduct and the failure to disclose material terms and conditions during the marketing of services.
NCC weighs in on rejected claims
The latest complaint has also prompted the NCC to clarify an important point about consumer contracts. NCC spokesperson Phetho Ntaba said Cartrack could not rely on contractual terms that had not been brought to a customer’s attention when the agreement was concluded.
‘In other words, a term that was not brought to the consumer’s attention at the time of contracting cannot subsequently be relied upon as a basis for rejecting a claim.’
– Phetho Ntaba, NCC spokesperson
He stressed, however, that the earlier settlement related to specific complaints and circumstances and did not prevent the commission from taking action over new contraventions. ‘The NCC continues to prioritise such complaints,’ Ntaba said. The commission has also advised consumers to read the terms and conditions of agreements before entering into them.
Cartrack says claim was assessed fairly
Cartrack disputes Vinjwa’s account of why the claim was rejected. Spokesperson Lauren Human said Vinjwa’s account was already in arrears when his vehicle was stolen on June 16, 2026. She said his last successful payment had been received on March 28 and that the outstanding arrears were only settled after the theft.
‘His account was in arrears at the time of the theft and therefore does not qualify for the Limited Recovery Warranty reward.’
– Lauren Human, Cartrack spokesperson.
Cartrack also maintains that the terms and conditions were provided to Vinjwa when he signed up. The company said it continues to assess warranty claims according to its revised terms and conditions, which were amended following its engagement with the NCC.
Human said the regulatory matter concerned aspects of Cartrack’s subscriber agreements where greater clarity was required, adding that the changes had already been implemented and remain in place.
Vinjwa’s complaint will now put his individual dispute before the consumer watchdog, while Cartrack maintains that his claim was rejected in accordance with the terms of his agreement.
Be the first to know – Join our WhatsApp Channel for content worth tapping into! Click here to join!
Also Read:
‘We were never consulted’ – Cape Town residents challenge Equinix data centre
Picture: Daniel Andraski / Pexels
