Road Accident Fund amendment bill up for comment

The Introduction of a "no-fault" 30-day period which would allow all accident victims to receive medical treatment, is but one of the benefits contained in the draft Road Accident Fund Amendment Bill, 2014 (the Bill) published for public comment this week.



Furthermore, the Bill will empower the transport Minister to draw up a list of serious injuries sustained from road crashes. This list will enable victims who suffer serious injuries contained in the list to qualify to receive a lump sum for non-pecuniary loss ("general damages") from the Road Accident Fund (RAF), thus greatly reducing the cost, time and inconvenience associated with certain claimants having to be formally assessed for these injuries.



The proposed amendments to the current compensation scheme administered by the RAF were published under General Notice 950 in Government Gazette No. 38173 on 3 November 2014 and interested parties are invited to submit comments to the Department of Transport within 30 days of publication.



Work to legislate a no-fault scheme known as the Road Accident Benefit Scheme is ongoing, but until its implementation, further amendments to the Act are necessary to facilitate effective and efficient delivery of services and continue to improve the liquidity and sustainability of the RAF.



Further changes that are being proposed to the Bill are that:

* A definition for a "medical practitioner" is inserted to ensure certainty with regards to who should complete the statutory medical report on the RAF 1 claim form.



* The RAF will be empowered to amend the forms provided for in the Act to ensure that the forms are user friendly and aligned to amendments of the Act and other legislation.



* The attachment, removal and sale of RAF assets following a final court order will only be possible after a structured process is followed.



* Provision is made to pay compensation in respect of funeral expenses on a "no-fault" basis, subject to an overall cap, and in respect of specified items only. This amendment will facilitate faster compensation to families who lose loved ones in road crashes. Additionally, there will no longer be any exclusion from this benefit on the basis of fault.



* The RAF will be empowered to offer to claimants a cost contribution with the settlement offer, thereby limiting the impact that legal fees may have on the compensation paid to the claimant.



* The current two-tariff system provided for in the Act is replaced with a single medical tariff which will facilitate faster claim administration and ensure that claimants have certainty with regards to the tariff that will apply to treatment provided to a road crash victim.



* The uniform prescription period (within which to lodge a claim) is introduced for both "identified claims" (where the "guilty" driver or owner is known) and "hit-and-run" claims (where the "guilty" driver or owner is unknown). "Hit-and-run" claims are currently subject to a shorter prescription period. The amendment will place "hit-and-run "claims on the same footing as "identified claims".



Comments on the Bill should be directed to the Acting Director General, Department of Transport, for attention of John Motsatsing or Ngwako Thoka at:

The Department of Transport

Private Bag X193

PRETORIA

0001

E-mail: Motsatsj@dot.gov.za E-mail: ThokaN@dot.gov.za

Tel: (012) 309 3574 Tel: (012) 309 3764

Fax: (012) 309 3962 Fax: (012) 309 3962