Bell v The Road Accident Fund

The appellant, employed as a baggage controller at Cape Town International Airport, was injured in a collision on 18 November 1994 with a flatbed transporter operating within the airport’s airside operational area. He sued the Road Accident Fund for damages, alleging negligence by the transporter’s driver. The Fund raised a special plea that the claim was excluded because the flatbed transporter was not a ‘motor vehicle’ as defined in the Multilateral Motor Vehicle Accidents Fund Act 93 of 1989 and the associated Agreement, since it operated only within the airport and not on a public road.

The appeal was upheld with costs. The order of the High Court upholding the special plea was set aside and replaced with an order dismissing the special plea with costs.

The case confirms a broad and purposive interpretation of ‘motor vehicle’ and ‘road’ in South African motor vehicle accident compensation legislation. It reinforces that vehicles operating on private or restricted-access roads, such as airport roads, may fall within the Road Accident Fund scheme, thereby extending protection to injured third parties.