Big changes for the Road Accident Fund in South Africa – lawyers fight back
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GUEST – Advocate Justin Erasmus, Chairperson of the Personal Injury Plaintiff Lawyers Association (PIPLA)
Legal experts are crying foul over proposed changes to the Road Accident Fund, which will see the fund severely cut down on the support offered to road accident victims and negate compensation in some cases entirely. The Department of Transport gazetted the draft Road Accident Fund Amendment Bill, 2023 for public comment on 8 September, giving commentators just one month to provide feedback on the bill. Broadly, the bill aims to make a lot of changes to the way the RAF actually works, but one of the more contentious points is moving from a compensation model to a “benefits” model for those who are claiming.
According to Advocate Justin Erasmus, Chairperson of the Personal Injury Plaintiff Lawyers Association (PIPLA), an association representing approximately 300 Personal Injury lawyers, legal practitioners are moving heavily against the bill
Legal experts are crying foul over proposed changes to the Road Accident Fund, which will see the fund severely cut down on the support offered to road accident victims and negate compensation in some cases entirely. The Department of Transport gazetted the draft Road Accident Fund Amendment Bill, 2023 for public comment on 8 September, giving commentators just one month to provide feedback on the bill. Broadly, the bill aims to make a lot of changes to the way the RAF actually works, but one of the more contentious points is moving from a compensation model to a “benefits” model for those who are claiming.
According to Advocate Justin Erasmus, Chairperson of the Personal Injury Plaintiff Lawyers Association (PIPLA), an association representing approximately 300 Personal Injury lawyers, legal practitioners are moving heavily against the bill