Why we need Road Accident Fund In Zimbabwe

#WhyISupportTheRoadAccidentFundEstablishmentInZimbabwe The last time I travelled to Zimbabwe was end of August this year. I travelled by bus from Johannesburg to Harare. After dropping off at Roadport I walked to Samora Machel Avenue opposite Holiday Inn and boarded a Toyota Minibus to Murehwa. About 40kms from Harare we saw a Toyota Hiace minibus that had just overturned. A lot of vehicles had stopped by and people were rushing to help. A group of men decided to move the vehicle with their bare hands in order to free trapped passengers. Injured people were being pulled like sacks, I worried about possible spinal cord injuries. We were there for around 30 minutes and not even one ambulance came, I suspect one or two ladies who were pulled from the wreck never made it. I have seen statistics somewhere which says that Zimbabwe has the worst survival rates in the whole world following a motor vehicle accident and I believe those statistics, I actually get so much anxiety driving in Zimbabwe as I have seen a lot. What people don’t realise is that Zimbabweans pay for that insurance yet the money is not utilised for it’s intended purpose. Having worked for 10 years in the insurance industry in Zimbabwe before I left for South Africa more than 17 years ago, I feel that insurance companies use that portion of insurance premiums to cover their running expenses and not to assist victims of Road Traffic Accidents. From 2004 to 2006 as an underwriting manager of a major insurance company in Zimbabwe, I sat on the Special Risk Committee of the Insurance Council of Zimbabwe, once week about 6 of us would meet at Bothwell House, Jason Moyo Avenue in Harare for about 3 hours to do underwriting and claims for liability of fare paying passengers and other special risks. (The majority of members were CEOs of insurance and Reinsurance Companies).What still haunts me is the paltry payouts we paid for fare paying passengers who claimed. The insurance council also receives all the insurance premiums for foreign registered vehicles that drives into Zimbabwe and the amount is $40 per every 30days. What is that amount utilised for? that amount is the reason why it’s expensive to drive into Zimbabwe with a foreign registered vehicle. Which insurance am I talking about, it is the compulsory Road Traffic Act or Third Party insurance that covers for death and bodily insurance following a road traffic accident. What the government seeks to do is to take over that insurance as what happens in South Africa and Namibia. Even though governments are very inefficient looking at the system in South Africa, it is much better. Following an accident in South Africa private ambulances ferry injured victims without demanding a payment upfront and then submit invoices to the Road Accident Fund. Such an environment will aid to minimise permanent disability and aid in the comfort of patients. Having more ambulances in the country will help even in managing general illnesses.