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A woman has won a RM1.245 million lawsuit against an insurance company after it refused to pay out for her wrecked Porsche 911 GT3 RS unless she first paid customs duties on the vehicle
The Kuala Lumpur High Court today, 28 May, ruled in favour of car owner Lai Leong Peng, whose luxury vehicle was declared "beyond economic repair" (BER) following an accident in October 2022.
Judicial Commissioner Leong Wai Hong ordered Pacific & Orient Insurance Co Bhd to pay the full insured sum, along with several additional costs and damages.
Besides the RM1.245 million payout, the court also ordered the insurer to pay:
- RM5,150 in towing charges
- RM13,317.80 in storage fees
- RM2,059 in psychiatric treatment expenses
- RM50,000 in legal costs
The court further ordered that general damages for mental distress suffered by Lai be assessed separately.
The insurer was also ordered to pay 5% annual interest on the judgment sum from the date the lawsuit was filed until full settlement.
According to FMT, the insurer has since filed an appeal to the Court of Appeal.
The dispute began after the insurer changed its payout conditions
Lai's Porsche 911 GT3 RS was registered in Langkawi under the island's tax-free vehicle scheme and insured for RM1.225 million.
After the accident, the insurer initially classified the vehicle as BER and offered to pay the insured amount after deducting the policy excess.
However, the company later imposed an additional condition requiring Lai to first pay customs duties on the car before the insurance payout could be released.
Lai rejected the condition and sued the insurer, arguing that neither the insurance policy nor Malaysian law required her to settle customs duties before receiving compensation.
A Porsche 911 GT3 RS on display in the Porsche Museum.
Image via Silas Stein/dpa Picture-Alliance/AFPJudge says insurer acted "in bad faith"
In a nine-page judgment, Leong described the insurer's demand for customs duty payments as "misguided and in bad faith".
The judge said the insurer had already accepted liability when it classified the car as BER and made settlement offers without raising any concerns about non-disclosure or misrepresentation.
The insurer later alleged that Lai had used a false Langkawi address when registering the vehicle.
However, the court rejected the claim, noting that the address existed and had been accepted by both the Road Transport Department (JPJ) and the Customs Department.
The judge also pointed out that no investigation or prosecution had ever been initiated against Lai over the address issue.
Leong further ruled that the insurer could not later repudiate the insurance policy over alleged misrepresentation because it had failed to do so in accordance with Section 19 of the Contracts Act.
"Evidence from the insurer's own witness confirmed that the policy had never been repudiated," the judge said.
Lai was represented by lawyers Lee Chan Leong and Goh Chin How, while the insurer was represented by Viknesvaran Kanagathipillai and Archana Devi Thirumalai.
