MEDIA RELEASE
ACCF REACHES OUT TO KASAVU INCIDENT FAMILIES
The Accident Compensation Commission of Fiji (ACCF) held its fourth Board meeting for the year on Tuesday, 30th August 2022. As part of Management’s update, the Board was apprised of the progress made by ACCF since the last Board meeting.
The ACCF CEO, Mr Parvez Akbar informed the Board that the team has reached out to the family of the individuals who passed away after a tree branch fell on their motor vehicle on Saturday, 27th August 2022, near Kasavu Road in Naitasiri. ACCF expressed its sincere condolences to the family and has offered assistance and support in respect of applications for compensation that may arise from the incident.
Mr. Akbar also advised the Board that close to 80% of the victims or families of the victims who were seriously injured or lost loved ones from motor vehicle, employment and school accidents would have missed out from receiving compensation under the old law. This was established after analysing payments made by ACCF in the context of the previous requirement to prove fault.
There were other exclusions under policies of insurance that applied prior to the introduction of the Accident Compensation Scheme, which means that the number of victims of accidents who would have been excluded from compensation in the past is actually higher. Previously some victims of motor vehicle and employment accidents were unable to recover their entitlement to compensation as a result of companies becoming insolvent. The introduction of the Accident Compensation Scheme by the Fijian Government removed these challenges.
The ACCF Board noted that a total of $34.8 million in compensation had been paid since 01st January 2018, of which $24,258,500.00 was for motor vehicle accidents, $9,916,500.00 for employment accidents and $688,500.00 for school accidents.