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Author Archives: Heine De Villiers
E-TOLL
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Texts from my dog
If your dog could text you, how would it go.
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Phillip’s Gonarezhou Trip Report
My record so far
This didn’t include any jerrys , and the front tank was still on a quarter
From the Cruiser Forum by Hennie Kotze
To Rove, or not to Rove!There was a man from the darkest Continent,
who wished to explore it from end to end!
Before long he put deeds to his thought
and went to town where he diligently sought
for a means to rove the yonder land!
who wished to explore it from end to end!
Before long he put deeds to his thought
and went to town where he diligently sought
for a means to rove the yonder land!
And thus the marketplace he carefully scoured,
mindful of the pitfall that he could be devoured
by a horse trader of such dubious disposition
that even his most vigilant premonition
would serve him to no end!
His search for a wagon or vehicle of sort,
that would ferry him overland without abort
became a tiring quest that eventually
lead him, to speak figuratively and literally,
on the path to his first discovery!
For as he patiently roamed the town
a billboard suddenly stared him down!
“Land Rover” it glowed so brilliantly bright
that in his mind it triggered a light!!
“Of course, just what I need to rove the land!”
Thus in he went and bought a Landy
with which he felt extremely dandy!
And as proudly he ‘roved’ down the road
he felt just like the old fairytale Toad
about to be kissed by the Princess!
In his Discovery he set out to acquire
everything that his exploration would require!
From tents and blankets, pots and pans,
to a rack for the roof and some jerrycans!
“Dr Livingstone I presume!”
And finally he and his Randy Lover,
was ready to take to the wild to discover!
Poor fellow, little did he know
that now his bitterest woe
was about to commence!
At first the Rover went like a charm
and in driving fast he saw no harm!
Across the road he went at speed,
proud on the trot like a noble steed!
Until he reached the outskirts of town!
Its a long story that from here onwards ensued
in which frustration overrun the poor dude!
From daybreak to the middle of the night,
everything went wrong and nothing right!
Reliability, oh Reliability! Where art thou?
However, in all fairness it is a fact
that the LR crowd improved their act!
And before the crack of the following day,
a replacement Disco was on its way!
And finally he could leave the outskirts of town!
Low and behold, the LR replacement
smacked of a good improvement!
On he charged, off the road into the rough,
the Landy was made to go this tough!
Let the fun and games begin!
And so the replacement Disco took him far,
away from the town and far from the tar!
Way into the world of all wheel drive,
where only the Overland Manne thrive!
Here the best have to prove their mettle!
Far off the tar another chapter was written,
because our LR man was overly smitten
with his machine’s ability to tackle the wild,
which soon he would learn is rather mild.
He was still to meet Mr Experience!
Like a vicious lion the Disco roared,
and up and over the dune it soared!
With hill descent, traction and terrain control
the Landy was unstoppable on a roll!
Oblivious to the beginning of the end!
Invariably grey matter will always gain
the upper hand over the virtual domain!
Thus the ‘digital driver’ is doomed to fail
where flesh, blood and experience prevail!
Enter the 21st Century Land Rover!
The rest is now history of the past
for the Landy fell quite quickly and fast!
Burried up to its belly in grime and grit,
the Disco dumped its driver in the (censored)!
The digital driver out of its depth!
The day went on and the shadows long,
our Landyman now not quite so strong.
The dark of nightfall was not the fear,
but how to get the Disco out in the clear!
This is not a situation you wish for foe or friend!
But then the Discoman froze into a poise!
Was that just imagination, or really a noise?
Yes, the noise grew unmistakably clear,
someone else was drawing near!
One very relieved Discoman!
With the deep baritone drone of six in a row,
the four and a half EFI (SFA) glided to a slow!
A calloused hand reached out in comprehension
with a gesture of typical ‘Overland’ compassion!
The Discoman thanking his lucky star!
The thirty three muddies mauled the earth,
as the Disco slowly lifted from its berth!
The six-man squad showed little strain,
in helping the Disco onto level plane.
Then it was time to dig into the Luna!
With darkness now calling the shot,
it looked like a decent camping spot!
Unceremoniously a howling moon and eazi awn
were summoned to duty till the crack of dawn!
The Luna’s lid worked overtime without complaining!
Later, as the Kameeldoring flames licked the sky,
the Discoman gathered the courage to ask: Why?
What makes the difference more or less,
of Yota’s unquestionable superior success?
The Yotaman sipped his fizz and smiled.
Is it the men, Old Emu or Ironman, he wanted to know,
that always help Yota to steal the show?
Or is it quite simply plain
the size of your muddies or all terrain?
The Yotaman sipped his fizz and cleared his throat!
With wisdom gleaned from many a day
the Yotaman prepared the final say!
Leaning over to the Landyman’s closest ear,
“Elementary my dear Discoman”, he said for only him to hear:
“The ultimate secret is not to Rove,…….but to Cruise!”
Gonarezhou April 2012
This was my first “real” overlanding trip in Bo . We were joined by:
Nick and Hester Coetzee – V6 Prado + Echo Trailer
Damian,Lydia and Nikita Stander – Discovery 4 SDV6 + Conqueror Trailer
Phillip and Dena Sprules – Defender 130 TD5
and of course Jagie Bear
Day One 26 April
We left home at about 5 AM and met up with the rest of the guys at the Petroport north of Pretoria. After stopping for breakfast at the Ultra City outside of Polokwane we headed for Louis Trichardt where we filled up and then into Kruger via the Punda Maria gate
We thought about having lunch at the restaurant, but I had an early taste of Zimbabwe in that my first, second and third choices on the menu were out of stock. This in addition to the credit card machine not working. We filled up with fuel and headed to Pafuri River Campinstead after a brief detour through the park.
Tree house option on the river
River view from the campsite
Our campsite
And private showers / toilets
The bar and pool area
Very reasonably priced at R90 per person. You can also have meals in the bar area
Day Two 27 April
After a slow start, because we had a fairly short day ahead (yeah right), we headed back into the park to the Pafuri Border Post, after a short stop at Crook’s Corner.
The border crossing went quickly enough, probably sped up by the fact that I paid an “import fee” for food and alcohol on the Mozambique side without realising it. Apparently Phillip had been “charged” but was refusing to pay, when I happily came along and paid it without question. In my defence I thought I was paying for road tax or something.
We headed to the river crossing and were relieved to see that the river was very low and I thought that we would be across very easily.
Bo at rivers edge (and in 2wd high range I might add – the torque on this engine is awesome)
The rest ready and waiting
Filly done
That’s however when the fun started.
Damian drove onto the river bank and promptly got stuck, which was probably my fault as we were not on the main track. The next 3 and a half hours were spent in alternatively recovering him and Phillip who got stuck helping him out.
Damian out – now for the trailer (notice how high the car stands in “super extended mode”)
Trailer winched out
All hooked up again – with Filly in the lead – off we go !
But not for long
Nick helping Filly help Damian
But not for long – eventually we had to winch Filly out with a snatch block
Out at last .
We eventually got Damian over the river and then went back for the trailer . As good as the D4 is , it really battled with a 1 ton plus trailer in thick sand . Luckily Damian was with friends ….. 
After some fun in the sun, we headed for Sango Border Post, after first helping a local out the river bank.
We reached Sango at about 4.30 and were across quickly on the Mozambique side. The Zimbabwe side went quite quickly as well, until we reached the exit gate.
Here the police battled to find engine numbers on all of our cars until it was past 6 O’clock (note to self, must remember to find it for future reference).
As it was now past 6,we were told we would have to wait until tomorrow, as they were now off duty, despite the fact that the border was open until 8. The other option would be to “assist ” them. So R150 and two beers later we were through the gate.
While I normally refuse to pay bribes, it was apparent that we weren’t going to get through that night, any other way.
We then looked for the closest accommodation on the GPS, which was Simwunini.
It turned out that there was no camping, only chalets. We then continued to Mabalauta where we drove around a bit until we found the guard who allowed us in after a bit of persuasion (no money this time though) and a promise to book in the next day.
We finally set up camp at about 8 pm, 11 hours and 138 km after leaving Pafuri
Day 3 28 April
Spent a quite day around the campsite, only going out for a late afternoon drive. We didn’t see much, other than a herd of elephant.
Very nice campsite with lots of shade
This was before Filly discovered there was an ablution block 
The previous day caught up with Hester
What would a trip be without a Landy with an open bonnet 
View from one of the lookout points
Damian’s form continued with him getting a puncture on his way back to camp.
Ask me no questions and I’ll tell you no lies
It was great to see that the general area was in good shape, with all the buildings and hides looking like they had recently been refurbished.
Day 4 29 April
We headed back out the park, destination Fishans Camp. The road along the railway line was better than I expected and we made it to the reception in good time, after a short traffic jam at the causeway.
The water was very low and crossing was easy
We stopped for lunch at Chipinda Pools and then headed on to Fishan’s.
Damian got stuck coming out the river, and then Phillip had to recover me, after I got stuck pulling Damian out.
But it was nowhere as bad as Pafuri had been and 20 minutes later we where on our way again.
Upon arriving at the campsite, I wasn’t overly surprised to see someone already there. Another double booking! I’m beginning to suspect that this has become a unspoken policy of the Zimbabwe Parks Board.
Any way after introducing ourselves we went a bit further along and set up camp. Quite a different experience to our previous double booking in Hwange.
We had sun downers in the river bed and several beers to wash the dust away.
Ellies in the river
After supper we all had an early night
Day 5 30 April
We had a lazy morning, and then headed in the direction of the Chilojo Cliffs to go look for Hennie Rautenbach’s geocache.
After much backwards and forwards. we eventually gave up, as all the roads became dead ends and headed to the cliff viewpoint for lunch.
Nick developed a problem with his low/high range selector, with the car refusing to go into low range or select any of the other options. This was going to be an issue, as he needed low range to get back across the river.
I managed to get hold of Patrick Bremner on the sat phone and he in turn got hold of someone who worked for Toyota. After a couple more phone calls, Nick was told to check a sensor on the transfer case. The connector had come loose, so problem solved.
We had sun downers in the river again, accompanied by some ellies.
Not quite noticeable in this pic is the ellie that came out the river just to the right of Nick’s trailer
Day 6 1 May
We’d been hearing lions ever since we got into the park , but last night they were very close , with tracks in the river and also just behind our camp .
Dena’s footprint on the left , lion’s on the right
After breakfast we started home , via the back way out the park. Although this meant we had about a 150 km of dirt roads , we didn’t pass through any road blocks .
Damian and I however were both fine $20 for doing 88 km in a 60 km zone , although there were no signs to back this up. I wasn’t going to waste time over $20 though .
When we arrived at Beit Bridge , I was initially relived because there weren’t many cars in evidence. Unfortunately there were many locals queuing to get back into SA after the long weekend , and the waiting time was running at about 4 hours according to some people in the queue .
We decided to pay for runners and cleared the Zim side in about 20 min . It cost us R800 per car , but I felt it was worth it (it might have been less, but I made a rookie mistake when I paid for the first part of the process and I had left all my rands in my wallet. I’m pretty sure that drove the price up for the next stages)
We stopped off at the Spur in Messina for supper , and Phillip and I decided to stay over , while Nick and Damian drove home .
We headed to Boabab Caravan Park were I had stayed before , but they have done away with camping , so we had to book a chalet instead. Not great , but not bad for R330 for two people.
Day 7 2 May
We left at about 6.30 and where home at about 12.30
In Conclusion
It’s been about 8 years since I was last in Gonarezhou , and it is definitely somewhere I will be visiting more often from now on. It is apparent that corruption is more common in the Southern parts of Zimbabwe , as I’ve never had any of the issues we experienced , when crossing the border higher up .
As far as Bo goes , I am over the moon with the performance and handling of the car itself , and the camper setup also makes it very easy to camp almost anywhere if required , and our set up time was around 5 minutes from stopping .
Public opinion on E-tolling
E-Tolling reply from Botha Attorneys
A Lawyers opinion on the E tolls (or apparently not)
Botha Attorneys
Attorneys at Law/Prokureurs
Specializing in Corporate Debt Recovery
56A Shortmarket Street, Newlands, Johannesburg, 2092. P.O. Box/Posbus 508, Newtown, 2113
Tel: 087 830 2255 Fax/Faks:011 477 0615
DX 281, JHB
E-mail: deon@bothaattorneys.co.za
Deon Botha (B.Jur LLB)
Our Ref: D. Botha/jb/
Ons Verw
Your Ref:
U Verw:
11th April 2012
E-TOLLING – GENERAL COMMENTS
This communication is not a legal opinion in any way whatsoever and only forwarded to yourselves for comment and for further discussion.
As you are all aware, motorist in Gauteng will be paying “toll fees” for the use of the new upgraded Gauteng freeways, to fund the Gauteng freeway development project.
Instead of motorist being billed monthly and receiving a statement for the usage of the E-Toll roads and which usage is linked to your motor vehicle license plate number (VLN), Sanral is currently pushing and encouraging motorist to rather purchase an E-Tag and to register as an E-Tag user, or to register as a VLN user.
In return for purchasing and registering as a E-Tag user / VLN user they promise that motorists may then qualify and be entitled to discounts, be categorized as either a E-Tag user or a registered VLN user to be entitled to discounted tolls. Should you elect not to register with Sanral, you will however not be entitled to any discounts or lower tariffs.
At first glace and when comparing the normal toll rates, to that of the discounted toll rates when you elect to register, the normal and reasonable uninformed motorist would be guided only by the discounts when signing up for registration.
After perusal of Sanral Terms & Conditions however, and which must be signed prior to registration, you will immediately note that the advantages of registering as an E-Toll user is very limited and comes with various onerous and one sided terms and obligations favoring only Sanral. Many clauses in their terms and conditions are being viewed by ourselves as well as other institutions as being either unlawful or in contravention of the Consumer Protection Act.
DISADVANTAGES FOR MOTORISTS WHO ELECT TO REGISTER AS AN E-TAG OR VLN USER
- The discounts promised, and categorization as a registered E Tag user will not apply to all toll roads.
- The onus is placed on the registered E-Toll user to establish their user categorization and/or the tolls applicable to a specific E-Toll road. The motorist can obtain the information from Sanral website.
- A motorist who registers and thereafter fails to comply with any of Sanral’s prescribed terms and conditions, will be deemed to be an E-Road violator and their account can be referred to a collection agency called “Violations Processing Centre” which is a division of Sanral itself. (See paragraph 2 of Sanral terms & conditions).
- Motorist who register will be billed and will be liable for toll transactions recorded according to the user VLN or E-Tag.
- Motorist who register agree and understand that their liability to incur toll when the motor vehicle passes a tolling point and that the amount of toll is calculated with reference to the tolling point and not with reference to the KM traveled before the user reaches the tolling point.
- Motorist who register are given 3 payment options for topping up their E Toll accounts namely, Pre-Paid Accounts, Manual Top Up Payments, Automatic Top Up Payments, all associated with the risk taking into account that you are contracting with a wholly owned State Company where corruption is at the order of the day.
- Motorists who register further agrees and undertakes to ensure at all times that there is sufficient funds in the E-Toll account and should you fail to make sufficient payments into your E-Toll account will give Sanral the right to hand over your account to VPC for collection purposes.
- Motorists who register and who elect to link their E-Toll account to a credit card bank account, debit card further authorizes Sanral to:
- debit the motorists account to fund the E-Toll account for Toll fees incurred when raised;
- undertakes to ensure that sufficient funds are available in the account;
- places the duty on the motorist to notify Sanral of bank account detail changes.
- A registered motorist undertakes and agrees to settle all E-Toll transactions within any period required by Sanral.
- Should the registered motorist fail to make payments when required to do so, Sanral will have the right without notice to the motorists to suspend the motorist account, to red list the E-Tag and to hand the account over for collection to VPC.
- The registered motorist further agrees that failure to make payment in respect of an E-Toll transaction in terms of the terms & conditions may result in criminal proceedings against themselves.
- By registering the motorist agrees and understands that a statement of charges will be available on the E-Toll website for download and that should hardcopies be requested, that Sanral will have the right to charge for furnishing such copies.
- Registered motorists agree that any payment made to Sanral will be utilized against the oldest charge to the most recent.
- Registered motorist E-Toll account will be suspended if not used for a period of 12 months and will have to be reactivated. (at a charge).
- Registered motorist agrees further that Sanral will not be held responsible for any loss or damage a motorist may suffer as a result of incorrect banking details being provided by the user and captured by Sanral except for instances where Sanral or its agent acted with gross negligence.
- Registered motorists agree to be liable for additional fees and attorney charges which may be incurred by Sanral in the collection of outstanding E-Toll amounts.
- Registered motorists further consent to the onerous provision that it will be deemed that the fees charged by Sanral are correct and the onus is placed on the motorist to prove that such charges are incorrect.
- Registered motorists will not be provided with a receipt when they proceed through the tolling point. A tax invoice may however be requested but then at the expense of the motorist.
- By registering for an E Tag account the onus is placed on the motorist to change the motor vehicle details linked to the E Toll account when you lose possession of the vehicle or where ownership in respect of the vehicle is transferred to a third party. Failure to do so will mean that the motorist will remain liable for any E-Toll charges incurred.
- By registering the motorist acknowledges and accepts that by purchasing an E Tag and registering same does not in itself necessary result in a valid passage on an E Toll Road and that you may be prevented by Sanral to continue driving on the E Road.
- By registering, the motorist agrees and accepts that Sanral will be entitled and without notice to the motorist to suspend an E Toll account and to Red List an E Tag, for failure of any of Sanral terms & conditions. Should the motorist later prove that there was no transgression of Sanral terms & conditions, they will have no claim against Sanral as in terms of the agreement such claims are waived by the motorist in favor of Sanral.
- Whilst ownership in the E Tag and E Tag holder remains the property of Sanral the risk of loss, theft or damage passes to you upon delivery.
- By registering, the motorist irrevocably authorizes Sanral or its duly authorized agents to obtain from any institutions where they may have an account or any credit bureau any information concerning themselves.
- 24. By registering the motorist further acknowledge and accepts that Sanral may unilaterally update and amend their terms & conditions and that the motorist has consented to such amendments and has agreed to abide by such amended terms & conditions.
- By registering for an E Tag, the motorist is affording Sanral a blanket indemnity for any wrong doing, loss or damage that the motorist may have suffered by using the E road.
- A registered motorist further agrees to an unlawful provision in consenting to the jurisdiction of the Magistrate’s Court of Pretoria in respect of all matters arising out of the terms & conditions.
A copy of Sanral terms and conditions is attached hereto for your ease of reference.
ADVANTAGES FOR MOTORIST WHO ELECTS NOT TO REGISTER AND RATHER PAY THE NORMAL TOLL RATE TARIFFS
- Motorist will be billed for the use of the E Toll, without automatically being liable for such use, in the event of receiving incorrect readings from Sanral, theft, cloning of number plates, or the cloning of a motorist personal information etc
- The onus will be on Sanral to prove that it was the motorist’s vehicle that traveled the recorded distances.
- Payments will be made and effected by the motorist into a Sanral bank account.
- Sanral’s collection division (VPC) will have no jurisdiction over non registered motorists.
- Motorists will be entitled to monthly statements without any charge.
- Motorists would be entitled to dictate how payments be allocated in respect of Toll road usage.
- Motorists who do not register would not automatically be liable for additional fees or attorney charges.
- The onus remains on Sanral to prove that the fees charged and for which the motorist is debited are correct.
- Until an exemption notice is published motorist will be entitled to a receipt when paying for E Toll road usage.
- In the event of a dispute with Sanral regarding outstanding charges, Sanral will not have the right to prevent the non registered motorist from continued use of the E Toll road.
- Losses suffered by non registered motorist can be recovered by way of civil action.
- Sanral will not have the right to have access to any private information of a non registered motorist.
- Sanral will not have the right to amend any terms & conditions without the motorist agreeing to such amendments.
- In the event of litigation, Sanral will have to issue a civil Summons or proceed criminally against the motorist in terms of the Criminal Procedure Act and will be forced to litigate against the motorist in a Magistrate’s Court who has jurisdiction over that motorist. (It is unlawful to consent to the jurisdiction of a specific Magistrate’s Court).
The above comment is made and must be read in conjunction with various sections of the National Credit Act, and the Consumer Protection Act. Should you have any further queries please do not hesitate to contact writer hereof.
Yours faithfully
Deon Botha
Heine's Ramblings and Rumblings 