Road Accident Fund v Sheriff of the High Court, Pretoria East and Others and Road Accident Fund v Stoffels and Another

The Road Accident Fund (RAF) appealed two High Court decisions concerning its liability to pay post-judgment interest on damages awards where the court orders were silent on interest. In the Stoffels matter, the RAF paid the capital amounts of damages months after judgment but refused to pay post-judgment interest, relying on internal directives and the absence of an express interest order. In the Sheriff matter, the RAF sought declaratory relief that writs of execution claiming interest not expressly ordered were invalid and that sheriffs required affidavits quantifying interest, citing uncertainty around the prescribed interest rate. In both matters, the High Courts held that post-judgment interest accrued automatically by operation of law.

Both appeals were dismissed with costs. The RAF was ordered to pay the respondents’ costs, including the costs of two counsel where employed.

The judgment authoritatively confirms that post-judgment interest on RAF awards accrues automatically by law, even where court orders are silent on interest. It clarifies the interaction between the Prescribed Rate of Interest Act and the Road Accident Fund Act, rejects attempts to avoid interest liability through procedural arguments, and reinforces certainty for judgment creditors in RAF litigation.