How Do I Calculate a RAF Prescription Period For a RAF Claim?

Under section 23 of the Road Accident Fund Act 56 of 1996, the prescription period for a RAF claim is three years from the date on which the debt becomes due. For an identified claim — where the driver of the other vehicle is known — the debt becomes due on the date of the accident, so the three-year clock runs from that date. For an unidentified claim (a hit-and-run or untraceable driver), the Constitutional Court in Mafila v Road Accident Fund [2012] ZACC 26 held that the debt does not become due until the claim has actually been lodged with the RAF, so the clock only starts running from the date of lodgement. The clock can be interrupted by service of process on the Fund, by a written acknowledgement of liability, or by part-payment of the debt under the Prescription Act 68 of 1969.

The Legal Framework: Section 23 of the RAF Act and the Prescription Act

Prescription of a claim against the Road Accident Fund is governed by two statutes that work together. Section 23 of the Road Accident Fund Act 56 of 1996 sets the substantive three-year period within which a claim must be lodged or sued upon. The Prescription Act 68 of 1969 applies alongside it and supplies the mechanics — when a debt is deemed to be due, how prescription begins to run, the events that interrupt it, and what counts as a written acknowledgement of liability.

A RAF claim is a statutory debt. It arises once the claimant has suffered loss caused by the negligent driving of a motor vehicle, the statutory requirements for lodgement have been triggered, and the claim has in fact been lodged with the Fund. Because the debt is statutory rather than contractual, the start-date of prescription depends on when the statutory machinery actually engages — which is where the identified/unidentified distinction becomes critical.

The Two Prescribed Routes: Identified vs Unidentified Claims

South African law treats these as two separate prescription problems. The table below sets out the difference.

Feature	Identified claim	Unidentified claim
Driver / owner	Known and traceable	Unknown, anonymous, or untraceable (typical hit-and-run)
Triggering date for the 3-year clock	Date of the accident	Date the claim form is lodged with the RAF
Source of the rule	Section 23 of the RAF Act read with the statutory lodgement regime	Mafila v Road Accident Fund [2012] ZACC 26, confirmed in Mvubu v Road Accident Fund [2015] ZACC 18
Why the trigger differs	The Fund has the necessary particulars and the debt becomes due on the accident date	The Fund cannot be said to owe anything until lodgement actually puts it on notice
Common error	Assuming the clock starts only on lodgement	Assuming the clock starts on the accident date (the more common error)

The Constitutional Court’s reasoning in Mafila is straightforward: until an unidentified claim is lodged, the RAF has nothing to investigate and no debt that is due. Forcing the clock to run from an unknown accident date would, in many cases, extinguish a valid claim before the claimant could realistically act. Mafila tied the start of prescription to the date the Fund is actually engaged.

How to Calculate the Prescription Period: Step by Step

1. Confirm whether the claim is identified or unidentified. This is the foundational step. If the driver of the other vehicle is known and the vehicle can be identified, the claim is identified. If the driver fled the scene, cannot be traced, or is otherwise anonymous, the claim is unidentified.
2. Identify the triggering date.
   • Identified claim: the date of the accident (the collision date).
   • Unidentified claim: the date the claim form was lodged with the RAF (not the date of the accident).
3. Count three calendar years from the triggering date. Section 23 of the RAF Act prescribes three years. The period runs from the day after the triggering date to the same calendar date three years later. If the anniversary date does not exist in the final calendar year (for example, 29 February), the period ends on the last day of that month.
4. Check for any interruption of prescription. If any of the events listed in section 23(2) of the RAF Act or section 14 of the Prescription Act have occurred — a summons issued and served, a written acknowledgement of liability signed by or on behalf of the RAF, or part-payment of the debt — the period starts running afresh from the date of interruption.
5. Confirm lodgement was inside the three-year window. A claim lodged outside the window, without a successful interruption, is permanently prescribed. There is no administrative cure.

For practical purposes, the calculation should be set out in writing with the dates clearly stated. Litigation against the RAF frequently turns on a single document — the RAF’s own receipt-stamped lodgement record for an unidentified claim, or the sheriff’s return of service for a summons in an identified claim.

What Interrupts or Extends Prescription

Interruption resets the three-year clock. The events that interrupt prescription on a RAF claim are summarised below.

Event	Statutory basis	Effect
Service of a summons on the RAF that is validly issued and served before the period expires	Section 15(2) of the Prescription Act 68 of 1969	A fresh three-year period begins to run from the date of service
Written acknowledgement of liability signed by or on behalf of the RAF	Section 14(5) of the Prescription Act 68 of 1969	A fresh three-year period begins to run from the date of acknowledgement
Part-payment of the debt by the RAF	Section 14(1) of the Prescription Act 68 of 1969	A fresh three-year period begins to run from the date of payment
A formal demand that is acknowledged in writing or paid	Section 14 of the Prescription Act	Where the demand is acknowledged in writing or complied with, prescription is interrupted

The RAF does not have a general discretion to condone late claims. Once prescription has run, the claim is extinguished unless an interruption event can be shown to have occurred inside the three-year window. An administrative hold or the Fund’s own delay in adjudicating a lodged claim does not by itself stop the clock — only the interruption events above do. This is why practitioners build the file around the date of lodgement for an unidentified claim, or the date of service for an identified claim, from the very first instruction.

Common Pitfalls and Live Case Law

Three judgments shape the modern analysis:

• Mafila v Road Accident Fund [2012] ZACC 26 — the Constitutional Court held that, for an unidentified claim, the debt only arises once the claim is lodged with the RAF. This materially extended the practical deadline for hit-and-run and untraceable-driver claims and is the cornerstone judgment in this area.
• Mvubu v Road Accident Fund [2015] ZACC 18 — a further development of the lodgement-as-trigger rule for unidentified claims. Mvubu clarified the role of the RAF’s lodgement requirements in establishing when the debt arises.
• Gabuza v Road Accident Fund (70524/16) [2018] ZAGPPHC 634 — a recent application of the Mafila/Mvubu accrual framework to an unidentified claim in the Gauteng North High Court.

The most common error in practice is treating the three-year period as running from the accident date for every claim, including unidentified ones. That error leads to a finding of prescription in limine — the claim is struck off the roll before the merits are ever considered. The second most common error is believing the RAF can condone a late claim. It cannot; condonation is a court application, not an administrative one, and the underlying prescription defect must first be cured by an interruption event inside the window. Burger Huyser’s Roodepoort branch handles this work under Director Nadine Roesch-Prinsloo, whose practice is built around MVA claims and insurance repudiations that directly overlap with RAF prescription disputes.

Practical Steps If the Deadline Is Approaching

When the three-year window is closing, the priorities are clear:

1. Lodge the claim form with the RAF before the prescription date. For an unidentified claim, lodgement alone starts the clock and protects the claim; for an identified claim, lodgement is necessary but not sufficient — a summons must follow.
2. For an identified claim, have a summons issued and served before the three-year anniversary, or obtain a written acknowledgement of liability from the RAF that resets the clock.
3. Instruct an attorney to draft and issue the summons. The date of issuance and service is what matters, not the hearing date. A summons issued but not served inside the window does not interrupt prescription.
4. Confirm the correct respondent — the Road Accident Fund, not the Minister of Transport — and serve at the Fund’s registered address.
5. Keep a paper trail. Date-stamped lodgement receipts, sheriff returns of service, and written correspondence with the Fund form the evidence base if prescription is later challenged.

Across Gauteng, RAF-related prescription work sits within the firm’s general litigation practice. The Roodepoort branch under Director Nadine Roesch-Prinsloo focuses on MVA claims and insurance repudiations and is the natural first port of call for an approaching-deadline review; instructions can equally be taken at the Randburg head office, Sandton, Bedfordview, Alberton, Centurion, or Pretoria.

A missed prescription deadline ends a RAF claim permanently, so the practical question isn’t whether to seek help but when. Burger Huyser Attorneys’ litigation team handles MVA and RAF-related claims through its Roodepoort branch (16 Galena Avenue, Helderkruin, 011 668 0030) under Director Nadine Roesch-Prinsloo, and across the firm’s other Gauteng branches. If you’re approaching the three-year mark on a claim — identified or unidentified — contact the Roodepoort office for an initial prescription review before the clock runs out.

Frequently Asked Questions

How long do I have to claim from the RAF after an accident?

Three years under section 23 of the Road Accident Fund Act 56 of 1996. For an identified claim the clock starts on the date of the accident; for an unidentified claim it starts when the claim is lodged with the Fund, per Mafila v Road Accident Fund [2012] ZACC 26.

Can a RAF claim be condoned after the three-year period has run?

Not by the RAF itself. Once prescription has run, the claim is extinguished. The only way to revive it is to establish that an interruption event (such as service of a summons or a written acknowledgement by the Fund) occurred inside the three-year window, or that the claim was lodged in time for an unidentified claim.

Does the three-year period run from the accident date for a hit-and-run?

No. The Constitutional Court in Mafila and Mvubu held that for an unidentified claim the debt does not become due until the claim is lodged with the RAF, so the three-year clock starts from the date of lodgement, not the accident date.

What stops the prescription clock on a RAF claim?

Issuing and serving a summons on the RAF, a written acknowledgement of liability by the Fund, or part-payment of the debt by the Fund all interrupt prescription and start a fresh three-year period under the Prescription Act 68 of 1969.

Does the RAF Act replace the Prescription Act for RAF claims?

No. Section 23 of the RAF Act sets the three-year period for claims against the Fund, but the Prescription Act 68 of 1969 applies alongside it for the mechanics of when prescription runs, how it is interrupted, and what counts as an acknowledgement of debt.