Road Accident Fund Pays out Multi Million Rand to Injured Tourist

June 18 - A Swiss motorcyclist who was involved in a horrendous accident when visiting South Africa in November 2002, received a massive payout by the Road Accident Fund (RAF).

The settlement was negotiated between the RAF, a reinsurance company and the man, 39 year old JW Schoss.

The head on collision caused irreparable damage to Schoss, including the amputation of his right leg above the knee, the amputation of his right arm, a head injury and kidney failure.

A final estimate for damages, which included loss of limbs and earning potential, was calculated by PriceWaterhouseCoopers and revealed to be around R4 billion.

A settlement fee was finally reached, and the RAF agreed to pay Schoss R519,692,655.51 (or EUR 42 million).

Transport Minister, Sbu Ndebele said: "The RAF procures reinsurance cover for catastrophic losses."

"In the year that Mr Schoss was injured, the RAF had reinsurance cover for losses in excess of R50 million, subject to indexation linked to CPI," said Ndebele. "Thus, the claim was reported to the reinsurers, as was required in terms of the reinsurance treaty."

Ndebele said that following a meeting in London with the reinsurers, it was agreed that the Chief Executive Officer of the RAF would meet personally with Schoss in a bid to reach a reasonable agreement.

"The CEO met with Mr Schoss in June 2008 in Zurich and settlement negotiations were conducted over 2 days," said the Minister.

He said that due to the divergent figures provided by RAF experts, Ernst and Young and PriceWaterhouseCooper, a settlement figure was initially far apart.

However, as noted, the man was eventually paid out over half a billion Rand.