- SCOPA hearings confirm manipulated claims, illegal accounting, and ministerial awareness of RAF violations.
- The Association for the Protection of Road Accident Victims (APRAV) states that unlawful policies must be withdrawn before reform can commence.
- Victims demand public accountability and full restoration of lawful claims under the RAF Act.
The Association for the Protection of Road Accident Victims (APRAV) says Minister of Transport Barbara Creecy has knowingly allowed an unlawful claims system to operate and must now take action.
After explosive testimony before Parliament’s Standing Committee on Public Accounts (SCOPA), the organisation is demanding the immediate withdrawal of Board Notice 271 and a full return to the legally mandated Road Accident Fund Act of 2008.
APRAV claims the Ministry has ignored repeated court rulings and ongoing public warnings. It has called on Creecy to restore lawful administration and end the use of illegal claim procedures. “The minister can no longer plead ignorance. The law is clear, and the consequences of unlawful administration are severe,” the organisation stated.
Board Notice 271, introduced by the Road Accident Fund in May 2022, replaced the original claims process with new forms and requirements that courts have since declared unlawful. It allowed the Fund to reject valid claims by labelling them “non-compliant” or “unregistered,” effectively removing them from its liability records. Despite being set aside by the judiciary, the Fund continues to apply these provisions.
The Road Accident Fund Act of 2008 is the legally binding framework that governs how road-accident claims must be processed. It outlines the Fund’s obligations to victims, including who qualifies for compensation and how claims must be submitted, assessed, and paid. APRAV argues that returning to this Act is not optional, but a legal and moral necessity.
A defining test of leadership
APRAV has called on Creecy to withdraw the unlawful Board Notice and restore the Fund to lawful compliance. “Victims of road crashes, denied justice under an illegal claims regime, deserve a public forum where the minister explains how the Fund will restore the law and protect victims’ rights. Reform cannot start while illegal policies remain in place. Nor can trust be rebuilt without full transparency,” the organisation said in a statement.
Testimony presented during the hearings revealed that the Fund’s leadership, with the minister’s knowledge, implemented unlawful accounting standards and manipulated liabilities to reduce financial exposure. The switch to IPSAS 42 and the use of Board Notice 271 were described as deliberate strategies to remove tens of thousands of legitimate claims from the records.
Former RAF actuarial head IW Charakupa testified that these reforms caused a 65 percent drop in new claims and a 58 percent decline in finalised matters between 2020 and 2024. He said the changes were designed to support an accounting standard that conceals the Fund’s true financial position.
SCOPA Chairperson Songezo Zibi and MP Patrick Atkinson criticised the Ministry for allowing illegality to persist. Witnesses, including Thomas Harban from the Lawyers’ Professional Indemnity Insurance Fund, confirmed that the minister is fully aware of the unlawful system but continues to let it operate. Harban said there is no legal basis for the continued use of Board Notice 271 or its related claim-form system.
The path forward
APRAV says it supports the interventions proposed during the SCOPA hearings, especially those put forward by Harban. The group says the first step must be the immediate withdrawal of Board Notice 271, which continues to undermine lawful claims despite being declared invalid. It insists that the Road Accident Fund must return to the original procedures outlined in the 2008 Act, restoring the legal framework that protects victims and ensures fair compensation.
It is also urgent to re-register all claims unlawfully rejected under the current system, according to APRAV, which further states that these claims must be properly recorded and given link numbers to ensure they are processed and paid. Without this, thousands of victims will remain stuck in a system that refuses to recognise their rights, it said.
Victims remain unpaid
While the SCOPA inquiry has created momentum, APRAV warns that it will mean nothing if reform stalls. “The illegal system remains in place. Victims remain unpaid,” the organisation said.
Ngoako Mohlaloga, Deputy Chair of APRAV, said the numbers show a humanitarian and financial crisis. He warned that the Fund has abandoned its mandate and continues to operate outside the law.
“We call on every South African, from civil organisations to Parliament itself, to demand transparent reform and lawful administration of the Fund,” Mohlaloga said. “The law has spoken. Now the Ministry must act. Justice for road-accident victims cannot wait another day.”
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