RAF to speed up payouts to accident victims

For many years, fraud, corruption, and maladministration among stakeholders have overwhelmed the Road Accident Fund (RAF).

To restore its “dignity,” the RAF Board recently pledged to fast-track payments for road accident claims older than six months, which amount to more than R20 billion.

Claimants receive payouts by Road Accident Fund

In a media statement, the RAF Board announced that it had paid R3.3 billion to accident victims in South Africa over the past two weeks.

“The Board expects the monthly payments to be more than R4 billion per month throughout the year. This should become the norm as part of the RAF’s reviewed business model. These payments are expected to substantially reduce the claims backlog in the months ahead,” stated the Board.

The RAF’s plan to fast-track payments forms part of a broader effort to address widespread skepticism among South Africans about its claims processes.

GroundUp reported in March that law firms had defrauded the RAF of R340 million since 2021.

The Special Investigations Unit (SIU) told Parliament’s Standing Committee on Public Accounts that 102 law firms had submitted duplicate claims, of which the SIU has already recovered R318 million.

At the same time, the RAF’s new initiative seeks to tackle the systemic delays that have long plagued its claims system.

Thus far, the RAF Board has:

• Reviewed claims older than 180 days (or six months) and have prioritised settlements.
• Mechanisms have been put in place to review the claimant’s documents with urgency.
• Strengthened payment monitoring system to drive accountability and transparency.

The Board emphasized that all stakeholders must work together to restore order, rebuild credibility, and uphold the RAF’s dignity.

“The Board is acutely aware of the financial and emotional strain that delayed payments have caused for claimants and their families. We reaffirm our responsibility to resolve this matter with urgency and transparency,” it added.