Crash victims and families left destitute as RAF delays payments

Several road accident victims and their families are reporting severe financial hardship as they wait for compensation from the Road Accident Fund (RAF), which recently conceded it had a payment backlog of about R20 billion.

Families struggle while payments stall

Delays in paying successful claimants are having direct consequences for families whose breadwinners were injured and are unable to work. Claimants say promised payments have been repeatedly postponed, leaving some to rely on relatives or loans to survive.

Case: Hitler Mapolisa

One affected claimant is Zimbabwean-born former Bolt driver Hitler Mapolisa, who was involved in a serious car accident in Johannesburg on 19 December 2021 and sustained injuries that left one of his hands functioning improperly.

Mapolisa said:

“I was a Bolt driver for so many years, and on 19 December 2021 I was involved in a serious car accident and sustained injuries that left one of my hands functioning improperly.

Since then, I have been struggling to feed my family because I can’t drive for a long time. The court ruled the RAF must pay me within 14 days. But the RAF said the payment will be made after 180 days.”

According to The Citizen, the publication has seen a 2025 High Court order directing the RAF to pay Mapolisa about R1.2 million for loss of earnings. The Citizen also reports the order, issued on 20 May last year, stated that if the amount was not paid within 180 days, interest would accrue at 11% a year, and that the RAF was given 14 days to decide on his claim for general damages.

Mapolisa said he has been supported by his brother because he has no income. He told The Citizen he is a father of four and that he recently returned to Kwekwe in Zimbabwe’s Midlands because he was battling financially.

Case: Elnestie Smit

Another claimant, Elnestie Smit, said she and her daughter were involved in a collision near Nigel in Ekurhuleni and that delayed RAF payments forced her to take out a loan. When the RAF paid, about R700 000 went to settle that loan. Smit said the fund still owed her about R500 000 in interest that had accumulated during the delay.

She said:

“I am a bookkeeper by profession, but I am struggling to sit for a long time because of the injuries I sustained.”

Lawyers describe systemic obstacles

Lauren Fletcher, who represents Smit, told The Citizen that she was one of tens of thousands of claimants waiting for payment and described the social consequences of the delays as “heartbreaking.” Fletcher said enforcing court orders against the RAF was difficult because writs of execution frequently failed to secure payment.

Fletcher also said, according to The Citizen, that RAF bank accounts are often emptied shortly after funds are deposited and that the RAF changes the bank accounts it uses, which can frustrate attachment of funds. She said a sheriff had informed them execution had been frustrated in Smit’s case after the RAF changed its bank accounts. Fletcher added that attaching RAF property was often ineffective because much of the property used by the RAF was leased.

Fletcher said her firm had held meetings with senior RAF management to try to expedite payment, but, she said, little action followed. The RAF refused to comment, saying matters involving beneficiaries were confidential.

What claimants face now

Claimants in these cases report depleted savings, loans taken to cover basic costs and reliance on family support while court-ordered awards remain unpaid and interest accumulates on outstanding amounts.