The embattled Road Accident Fund (RAF) has taken a tough stance against those seeking to defraud the entity.
The RAF says its investigations have resulted in 44 arrests and 28 convictions since the 2021/22 financial year, and it’s not just claimants from the public that find themselves in the crosshairs.
Among those arrested were two doctors, three attorneys as well as a police officer and an RAF employee, a spokesperson for the fund said.
Offences included fraudulent claims to the value of R48 million, theft of R5 million in trust funds, soliciting money to fast-track a claim and completing statutory medical reports without treating a claimant.
“Criminal activities pose a significant risk to the Fund. These fraudulent claims by various individuals, if paid, could have diverted critical compensation away from deserving road crash survivors and their families, undermining the integrity of the work that the RAF is trying to do,” said RAF Chief Executive Officer Collins Letsoalo.
In the past three financial years, the RAF has followed preliminary investigations into 8,861 cases, of which 1,138 were referred to the South African Police Service (SAPS). During the same period, disciplinary action was taken against eight RAF staff members.
The RAF remains in a dire financial situation and recently came under fire from the South African Standing Committee on Public Accounts (SCOPA) after the entity received an adverse audit outcome for the third financial year in a row.
According to reports, the RAF is carrying an accumulated deficit of nearly R24 billion and is currently at loggerheads with the Auditor General over its accounting methods.
The RAF attributes its latest deficit to the fact that its fuel levy, which currently stands at R2.18 per litre, was not increased by the national Treasury for the past three years.
SCOPA said the RAF’s adverse audit outcome is primarily due to it using the International Public Sector Accounting Standards 24 method rather than the Generally Recognised Accounting Practice (GRAP) that is prescribed for South African government entities by National Treasury.
IOL