{
  "id": 12970170,
  "title": "Fix the RAF before seeking new revenue streams from South Africans",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/08/fix-the-raf-before-seeking-new-revenue-streams-from-south-africans",
  "topic": "finance",
  "section": "Finance & Markets",
  "published": "2026-10-08T22:42:10.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Daily Maverick",
    "slug": "daily-maverick",
    "url": "https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/opinionista/2026-10-09-fix-the-raf-before-seeking-new-revenue-streams-from-south-africans/"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "The Road Accident Fund (RAF) requires urgent reform rather than new revenue sources before South Africans are asked to contribute further. A former businessman and civil activist, Wayne Duvenage, argues that the RAF's crisis stems from weak leadership, poor administration, and inadequate oversight rather than a failure of revenue collection. The Department of Transport recently considered alternative funding methods, including a third-party insurance scheme, but dismissed the more pressing issues at hand.\n\nElectric and hybrid vehicles make up less than 1% of the current car park and are expected to remain a small fraction of South Africa's fleet for the next decade, according to the source. The RAF's crisis is not due to the government's inability to extract funds from motorists; instead, it is characterized by wasteful spending, inefficient systems, weak oversight, and poor leadership. Introducing a new payment mechanism would only feed a broken system and potentially introduce additional administrative costs.\n\nThe fuel levy is a simple and effective method for funding road-accident compensation, as it is automatically collected without the need for separate annual accounts or premium-collection bureaucracies. It also approximates a user-pays system, where those who drive more contribute more. Replacing the levy with a large annual charge or hybrid version could create affordability issues for households and small businesses, especially as electric vehicles eventually require a supplementary contribution mechanism.\n\nHistorically, South Africa introduced compulsory third-party motor insurance in 1942, but the system had issues such as falsification, evasion, uninsured vehicles, disputes over valid cover, and gaps in protection. The government switched to fuel-levy funding in 1986, which was implemented under the RAF under the 1996 legislation. Introducing a new vehicle-based annual payment system would revive questions about enforcement, policing, and consequences for non-compliance, as South Africa already struggles with vehicle licensing and roadworthiness.\n\nThe RAF has not been starved of money; in fact, RAF revenue grew from approximately R12.5-billion in 2010 to over R50-billion in 2024/25. However, performance deteriorated during the same period, with employee costs increasing significantly. The RAF's cost structure has become detached from acceptable performance, not due to a lack of revenue. The government should stop seeking more money to feed an inefficient, bloated, and broken machine, and instead focus on fixing the RAF.",
  "summary": "The RAF does not need a new revenue stream. It needs competent leadership, credible oversight and urgent reform before South Africans are asked to pay yet more.",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}