Road Accident Fund Claims: Deadlines, Forms and What the RAF Pays

The Road Accident Fund (RAF) pays compensation to people injured, and to the families of people killed, in road accidents in South Africa caused by someone else's negligence. It does this in place of the driver at fault: section 21 of the Road Accident Fund Act 56 of 1996 abolishes most common law claims against the negligent driver or owner, so for most people the RAF is the only place to claim.

The rules are strict. A claim that is lodged late, on the wrong form or without the required affidavit can be lost entirely, regardless of how serious the injury is. This guide covers the deadlines first, then who is eligible, what the RAF pays, the 2026 claim form position, and how attorneys and contingency fees work. Figures are current as of 25 October 2026.

The Deadlines: Missing One Can End Your Claim

Prescription is the single biggest reason RAF claims fail. Once a claim prescribes, the right to compensation is gone. The period depends on whether the vehicle that caused the accident can be identified.

The RAF's own FAQ puts it simply: identified claims must be lodged within three years of the accident and hit-and-run claims within two years, and both must be finalised within five years of the accident.

Minors and people under a legal disability

For identified-vehicle claims, section 23(2) says prescription does not run against a minor, a person detained as a patient under mental health legislation, or a person under curatorship. In practice that can give a child far longer than three years.

That protection does not apply to hit-and-run claims. Regulation 2(2) applies the two-year lodgement period "irrespective of any legal disability" of the claimant. A child injured by an unidentified vehicle has the same two years as an adult, so a parent or guardian should act quickly.

What the five years means

The five-year period is not an extra window to start a claim. Under section 23(3), a claim that was properly lodged in time will not prescribe before five years from the date the cause of action arose. If the claim has not been settled by then, legal proceedings need to have been started in time. An attorney can work out the exact dates for a particular claim, and the earlier that happens, the more room there is to fix problems.

The RAF's response times

Two further time periods in section 24 shape how a claim moves:

• If the RAF does not object to the validity of a lodged claim within 60 days, the claim is deemed valid in law in all respects (section 24(5)).
• No summons may be served on the RAF within 120 days of lodgement, unless the RAF repudiates the claim in writing before then (section 24(6)).

Who Is Eligible to Claim

The RAF's FAQ lists the people who may claim:

• A person who sustained a bodily injury in the accident, except a driver who was the sole cause of the accident.
• A dependant of a deceased breadwinner.
• A close relative of the deceased who paid for the funeral.

Section 17(1) covers "any person" injured by the driving of a motor vehicle anywhere in South Africa, so this can include passengers, pedestrians, cyclists and other drivers. A claimant under 18 must be assisted by a parent, legal guardian or curator ad litem.

The RAF is fault-based

The RAF pays only where the injury or death was due to the negligence or other wrongful act of the driver or owner of a vehicle (or the owner's employee on duty). If you were partly to blame, compensation is reduced. The RAF's FAQ gives the example that if you were 20% to blame, the Fund will reduce your claim by 20%.

Situations with special rules

• Hit-and-run: a claim is still possible if neither the driver nor the owner can be identified, but the two-year limit applies and the claim is made under section 17(1)(b).
• Employees conveyed in a vehicle: where an injured person being conveyed in a vehicle was an employee of its driver or owner and is entitled to compensation under the Compensation for Occupational Injuries and Diseases Act (COIDA), section 18(2) limits the RAF's liability to the difference between what could otherwise have been claimed and the COIDA amount.
• Emotional shock: section 19(g) excludes the RAF's liability for loss caused by emotional shock suffered by someone who witnessed, observed or was told of another person's injury or death. Section 21(2) preserves a claim against the wrongdoer in that situation.

What the RAF Pays and Its Limits

The RAF compensates proven loss. There is no standard amount, and lodging a claim does not guarantee a payout. The main heads of damage are below.

Loss of income and loss of support: the cap

Section 17(4)(c) limits the annual loss, "irrespective of the actual loss", to a set amount per year for loss of income, and per deceased breadwinner for loss of support. The Act's original figure was R160,000 a year. Section 17(4A)(a) requires the RAF to adjust it quarterly by notice in the Government Gazette to counter the effect of inflation.

The current figure is R390,664 a year, set by Board Notice 967 of 2026 (Government Gazette 55097) with effect from 31 July 2026. The notice explains that the figure was calculated by multiplying the R160,000 limit by 106.7/43.7, a consumer price index ratio.

The cap that applies to a claim is not necessarily today's figure. Section 17(4A)(b) says the amount is the one "set out in the last notice issued prior to the date on which the cause of action arose". So the accident date fixes the cap, not the date you claim or the date of judgment. Recent notices, as listed in the Acts Online consolidation of the Act (only Board Notice 967 was checked against the gazette itself):

The notices have followed a quarterly pattern, so a newer notice may be published at any time. If an accident happened after a newer notice was issued, that notice's figure applies.

The cap limits only loss of income or support. Medical costs and general damages are calculated separately. Future loss may be paid as a lump sum or in instalments as agreed (section 17(4)(b)). Loss of earnings claims are supported by documents such as an employer's certificate, payslips and tax records; where the claimant was not registered for tax, the RAF's checklist asks for a SARS non-registration letter plus three years of bank statements.

General damages and the serious injury assessment

The RAF pays non-pecuniary loss (general damages) only for a serious injury, and only as a lump sum (section 17(1)). For claims arising after 31 July 2008, a Serious Injury Assessment Report, the RAF 4, must be submitted confirming that the injury is serious.

Regulation 3 of the RAF Regulations, 2008 sets the method. The assessment must be done by a medical practitioner registered under the Health Professions Act. Once the Minister approves an AMA Guides training course by notice in the Gazette, the practitioner must also have completed that course. An injury is serious if:

• it results in 30% or more Whole Person Impairment under the AMA Guides; or
• under the narrative test, it resulted in a serious long-term impairment or loss of a body function, constitutes permanent serious disfigurement, resulted in severe long-term mental or severe long-term behavioural disturbance or disorder, or resulted in the loss of a foetus.

The 30% figure is a medical impairment rating under the AMA Guides, not the everyday idea of being "30% disabled". The Minister may also publish a list of injuries that may not be assessed as serious, and the RAF makes a Non-Serious Injury List available on its claim forms page.

A few practical rules from Regulation 3:

• The RAF 4 can be lodged separately after the claim, at any time before the lodgement period expires.
• The RAF pays for the assessment only if the injury is found serious and the RAF is liable on the claim overall.
• The RAF must be satisfied that the injury was correctly assessed. If it rejects the RAF 4 or disputes the assessment, the claimant has 90 days from being told to lodge a dispute with the Registrar. The dispute goes to an appeal tribunal of three independent medical practitioners.

Medical costs

Past medical expenses are claimed with itemised tax invoices and proof of payment. For future treatment the RAF issues an undertaking (section 17(4)(a)): it pays the costs after they have been incurred and on proof, or pays the provider directly. A claim under an undertaking certificate must be lodged and finalised within five years of the date the services were rendered.

Funeral costs

Section 18(4) limits funeral expenses to "the necessary actual costs to cremate the deceased or to inter him or her in a grave". There is no fixed rand amount in the Act. The RAF's Funeral Expenses page says a claimant may choose their own service provider and then claim with the invoice as proof of payment.

According to the RAF, the claimant may be the executor of the deceased estate, the heirs, a member of the deceased's immediate family such as a spouse, parent or child, or a person who was under a legal duty to pay for the funeral and incurred liability for it. The documents include the voucher or tax invoice, proof of payment, proof of relationship, the death certificate and the post-mortem or inquest report.

Interest and interim payments

Under section 17(3)(a), no interest is payable on an award until 14 days after the date of the court order. Section 17(6) allows the RAF to make interim payments in some cases.

The Claim Form After the 2026 Court Ruling

The claim form has been in dispute since 2022. Board Notice 271 of 2022 prescribed additional compulsory documentation for a valid claim, and Board Notice 302 of 2022 published a revised RAF 1 form. Both were challenged in court.

On 30 April 2026 the Supreme Court of Appeal dismissed the RAF's appeal in Road Accident Fund and Others v Legal Practitioners' Indemnity Insurance Fund NPC and Others [2026] ZASCA 63, with costs. The judgment holds that, with the impugned RAF 1 form set aside, "the status reverts to that in operation under the 2008 regulations."

The RAF then published a public notice on 24 July 2026. It said:

• Previously rejected claims that met the minimum legal requirements of section 24 would be accepted for re-processing using the 2008 RAF 1 form. This applied only to claims lodged from 6 May 2022 onwards.
• Claims already submitted and accepted on the 2022 RAF 1 form do not have to be resubmitted.
• Claims rejected because of the Board Notice would not prescribe up to and including 30 September 2026, and would keep their original submission date. New claims that had never been submitted did not qualify, and claims that had already prescribed remain invalid.

The 30 September 2026 date comes from the court order itself: the Supreme Court of Appeal amended the High Court's resubmission deadline to 30 September 2026.

That 30 September 2026 window has closed. It is not available to new claims.

As of 25 October 2026, the RAF's claim forms page still describes the 2022 RAF 1 as the form "to be used for claims lodged on or after 04 July 2022", read with Board Notice 271 of 2022. That page has not caught up with the judgment. Before lodging, confirm with the RAF Contact Centre or a branch office which version of the RAF 1 it currently accepts, and check that the form you download is the 2008 version.

How to lodge

Section 24 requires the claim and medical report to be on the prescribed form, "completed in all its particulars". An incomplete form is not acceptable as a claim (section 24(4)(a)). The claim must be sent by registered post or delivered by hand to an RAF principal, branch or regional office. The RAF's How to Claim page says documents must be submitted in hard copy and emailed documents are not accepted. The RAF site links a self-service portal, but we could not confirm that it accepts claim lodgements.

Keep a copy of everything you lodge and proof of the date it reached the RAF. That date matters for prescription.

What Must Accompany a Claim

The legal test for a valid claim is in section 24 and the prescribed RAF 1 form. Separately, section 19(f) says the RAF is not liable if the claimant refuses or fails to submit an affidavit setting out the particulars of the accident, or copies of statements and documents relating to it. The affidavit is therefore essential.

The RAF's How to Claim page also lists supporting documents. Since the 2026 judgment, this checklist is best read as the RAF's practice list rather than a set of extra validity requirements, but supplying everything available avoids delays and queries. For injury claims the list includes:

• The statutory medical report (part of the RAF 1) and hospital or medical records.
• The amount claimed.
• Certified copies of identity documents, and an unabridged birth certificate for a minor.
• The accident report, docket details and sketch plan.
• Consent for the RAF to inspect medical and financial records.
• The affidavit under section 19(f)(i).
• A power of attorney and contingency fee agreement, if represented.
• For general damages: photographs and the RAF 4.
• For loss of earnings: an employer's certificate, payslips, and tax records (or a SARS non-registration letter plus three years of bank statements).
• For past medical costs: itemised tax invoices and proof of payment.

For death claims, the list adds the death certificate, the post-mortem or inquest report, proof of dependency and an actuarial report for loss of support.

The RAF's forms are the RAF 1 (claim and medical report), RAF 2 (supplier claim), RAF 3 (driver's accident report) and RAF 4 (serious injury assessment). Accidents before 1 August 2008 use the older Form 1, 2 and 3.

Free Help From the RAF

The RAF's FAQ answers the question of whether a lawyer is required this way: "The Fund employs Information Officers at all branch offices of the RAF to assist claimants free of charge. However, a claimant may still decide to employ a lawyer. The lawyer will be entitled to charge a fee for professional services rendered."

The RAF's contact details, as listed on its website:

• Contact Centre: 087 820 1111 (Monday to Friday; the RAF lists 07h45 to 16h00 in its July 2026 notice), WhatsApp 071 605 4707, or SMS 44930
• Email: contactcentre@raf.co.za
• Complaints: complaints@raf.co.za
• Fraud: fraud@raf.co.za

Whether to go directly or through an attorney depends on the claim. Claims with disputed fault, serious injuries, loss of income or loss of support often involve medical and actuarial evidence and a real chance of litigation.

Attorneys and Contingency Fees

Most represented RAF claimants pay their attorney on a contingency basis. The RAF's Know Your Rights page says that "the use of contingency fee agreements in RAF matters is the norm".

The Contingency Fees Act 66 of 1997 sets two limits that apply together (section 2(2)):

1. The success fee may not exceed the attorney's normal fee by more than 100%, so at most double the normal fee.
2. In claims sounding in money, the total success fee may not exceed 25% of the amount awarded or obtained, and that amount does not include costs for this calculation.

Whichever limit is lower binds. According to the RAF, the client should be given a copy of the agreement and has 14 days to withdraw from it. The RAF also notes that party-and-party costs are paid by the Fund separately, and often much later. A client unhappy with an attorney's conduct or fees can be referred to the Legal Practice Council.

Claims agents and touts

Section 19(c) and (d) mean the RAF need not compensate where a claim is not instituted and prosecuted by the claimant, an attorney, or certain state representatives, or where the claimant has agreed to pay anyone else a portion of the compensation for handling the claim. Be cautious of people who approach accident victims at hospitals or accident scenes offering to handle a claim for a share of the payout.

RABS and Reform: Not Law

You may read about the Road Accident Benefit Scheme (RABS), which would replace the fault-based RAF with a no-fault benefit scheme. It is not law.

The Road Accident Benefit Scheme Bill (B17-2017) was introduced in June 2017, lapsed and was revived more than once, and is shown as rejected in Parliament's bill record. In a written parliamentary reply filed in December 2025 (NW6862), the Minister of Transport said the Department intends to replace the current dispensation with RABS, and that the Bill was still undergoing processes before it could go to Cabinet for approval for public consultation. Until a new Act is passed and commenced, every RAF claim is decided under the 1996 Act and its 2008 regulations.

Related South African Traffic Law Guides

• Traffic and Driving Laws in South Africa, the section overview.
• How Traffic Fines Work in South Africa, for fines under the AARTO and Criminal Procedure Act systems.
• AARTO and the Demerit Points System, on what is and is not in force.
• E-Scooter Laws in South Africa.
• South Africa Laws: Your Rights Explained, for every life area.

This guide is general legal information, not legal advice. For advice on your own situation, consult an attorney, or contact Legal Aid South Africa (0800 110 110) if you cannot afford one. RAF figures and forms change, so confirm the current position with the Road Accident Fund before lodging.

Frequently Asked Questions

How long do I have to claim from the Road Accident Fund?

If the identity of the driver or the owner of the vehicle is known, the claim must be lodged within three years of the date the cause of action arose (section 23(1)). For a hit-and-run, where neither the driver nor the owner can be identified, the claim must be lodged within two years (Regulation 2(1) of the RAF Regulations, 2008). The RAF's own FAQ describes both periods as running from the date of the accident.

Does the three-year period stop running for children?

For claims involving an identified vehicle, section 23(2) says prescription does not run against a minor, a person detained as a patient under mental health legislation, or a person under curatorship. That protection does not apply to hit-and-run claims: Regulation 2(2) applies the two-year lodgement period irrespective of any legal disability. If a child was hurt by an unidentified vehicle, treat two years from the accident as the limit.

What is the five-year rule?

Once a claim has been properly lodged, section 23(3) says it will not prescribe before five years from the date the cause of action arose. The RAF puts it as claims having to be finalised within five years of the accident. It is not an extra period for starting a claim, and if the claim has not settled, legal proceedings need to be started in time. An attorney can tell you the exact date that applies.

Which RAF 1 claim form should I use in 2026?

The Supreme Court of Appeal's judgment of 30 April 2026 ([2026] ZASCA 63) means the position reverted to the RAF 1 form prescribed under the 2008 regulations, and the RAF's public notice of 24 July 2026 refers to the 2008 RAF 1 form. As of 25 October 2026 the RAF's claim forms page still describes the 2022 form, so confirm the current form with the RAF Contact Centre (087 820 1111) or a branch office before lodging.

My claim was rejected under the 2022 form. Can it still be revived?

The RAF's 24 July 2026 public notice said previously rejected claims lodged from 6 May 2022 that met the minimum requirements of section 24 would be accepted for re-processing using the 2008 RAF 1 form, and that such claims would not prescribe up to and including 30 September 2026. That date matches the Supreme Court of Appeal's order, which extended the resubmission period for declined claims to 30 September 2026. That window has now closed. If your claim was affected, ask the RAF or an attorney where it stands now; the notice also said claims that had already prescribed remain invalid.

How much does the RAF pay for loss of income?

There is no fixed payout. The RAF compensates proven loss, reduced by any share of the blame the claimant carries. The annual loss used in the calculation is capped: R390,664 a year under Board Notice 967 of 2026, for accidents after that notice was issued on 31 July 2026. The cap applying to a claim is set by the last notice issued before the accident date, and it changes quarterly.

Can I claim for pain and suffering?

Only if the injury is assessed as serious. A registered medical practitioner must complete a Serious Injury Assessment Report (RAF 4). An injury is serious if it results in 30% or more Whole Person Impairment, or if it meets the narrative test in Regulation 3. General damages are paid as a lump sum.

Do I need an attorney to claim from the RAF?

The RAF says it employs Information Officers at all its branch offices to assist claimants free of charge, and that a claimant may still decide to employ a lawyer, who is entitled to charge a fee. Whether to use an attorney depends on the claim. Section 19 of the Act means the Fund need not pay where a claimant has agreed to pay someone who is not an attorney a share of the compensation for handling the claim, so be wary of claims agents or runners who offer that.

How much can an RAF attorney charge on a contingency fee?

Under section 2(2) of the Contingency Fees Act 66 of 1997, the success fee may not exceed the attorney's normal fee by more than 100%, and for claims sounding in money the total success fee may not exceed 25% of the amount awarded or obtained, excluding costs. The RAF's guidance says you should receive a copy of the agreement and have 14 days to withdraw from it.

Can I email my claim to the RAF?

Section 24(1) of the Act requires the claim to be sent by registered post or delivered by hand to an RAF office, and the RAF's How to Claim page says emailed documents are not accepted. The RAF site also links a self-service portal, but we could not confirm that it accepts the lodgement of claims, so check with the RAF first.

Is the Road Accident Benefit Scheme in force?

No. The Road Accident Benefit Scheme Bill (B17-2017) did not become law, and in a written parliamentary reply filed in December 2025 the Minister of Transport said a new no-fault scheme was intended but the Bill was still undergoing processes before going to Cabinet for approval for public consultation. Until a new Act is passed and commenced, RAF claims are decided under the Road Accident Fund Act 56 of 1996.