Road Accident Fund CEO Collins Letsoalo pleased with the court ruling. Picture: Supplied
The Road Accident Fund (RAF) has warned that it will not compensate accident victims who deliberately throw themselves in front of cars.
In a statement on Tuesday, the RAF said it is aware of a trend where people jump in front of moving vehicles to claim from the fund.
It said such people wait for the vehicles to slow down so that they don’t get killed on impact.
RAF CEO Collins Letsoalo described this behaviour as dangerous, adding unnecessary pressure on the fund.
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“The RAF does not compensate someone who intentionally causes a motor vehicle accident, even if it results in serious injuries. In the event of death, the RAF further does not compensate beneficiaries of the authors of their own misfortune,” Letsoalo said.
He said the RAF also will not compensate beneficiaries of those who intentionally get hit by moving cars.
“The RAF Act requires that the respective degrees of fault, blame or negligence, amongst other things, must be determined upon receiving a claim.”
Letsoalo said he understood that the socioeconomic climate in South Africa made life difficult for many citizens.
However, he said this is no reason to endanger other people and use the RAF as a cash cow.
“We acknowledge road users may be faced with socioeconomic challenges. However, road safety and road crash prevention efforts must remain a priority to all as they contribute towards reducing accidents,” he said.
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A total of 49 631 claims were declined from 2021 to 2024. This is because some claimants were solely responsible for causing the road crash.
Other claimants had died before the finalisation of the claims. There were also fraudulent claims and claims in which the individuals had not shown evidence of injuries.
Letsoalo said that South Africa recorded 7 987 road fatalities over the last five years during the festive season.
“Festive season road crash statistics cover 42 days from 1 December to 11 January each year.”
He said 84% of these fatal road crashes were caused by human conduct.
“Pedestrians and passengers were the most affected road users at 40% and 33% respectively, followed by drivers (26%) and cyclists (1%),” he said.
Road users must also remember that the RAF does not compensate for the death itself. It only pays for the costs of cremation or burial.
“The RAF values all road users and understands that in the unfortunate event of death in a road crash due to poor human behaviour, the experience can be devastating to the family,” Letsoalo said.
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