The South African Insurance Association which controls the vehicle salvage database has agreed to make information regarding accident-damaged cars accessible to the public in an attempt to curb previously written-off and poorly repaired vehicles from re-entering the used market.
The sad state of South Africa’s motor vehicles may not be immediately visible to the untrained eyes of unsuspecting road users but it is reflected in the high death toll that the country experiences annually.
The formula is simple, the more accidents the country has, the higher the road fatality statistic is. According to data from the Road Traffic Management Corporation (RTMC), there were 12 921 reported road fatalities in 2018 which represents 22.4 traffic deaths per 100 000 inhabitants.
The logic with this initiative is to reduce future fatalities by making it difficult for devious repairers who in collusion with used car dealerships sell cheaply purchased and poorly repaired vehicles to unsuspecting buyers by omitting accident damage information from the sale.
Many vehicles using our roads that have been previously written-off and are poorly repaired through unscrupulous workshops remain a risk to other road users. The South African Insurance Association (SAIA) which has a vehicle salvage database (VSD) on all vehicles that have been listed as Code 3 (uneconomical to repair) has agreed to make this information open to the public in the near future. This means that the endeavour for a new car can provide some unpleasant information on a deal that seems too good to be true after using the search engine.
Don’t worry, mild bumper bashings that may have scuffed the paint on your car won’t be listed into the system but rather the VIN numbers of all previously insured vehicles that have been written-off in Code 3 accidents. It is important to note that since insurance isn’t a legal requirement on South African roads, not all accident damaged vehicles will be listed so keep a keen eye for misaligned panels and telltale accident damage signs when buying. Click here to see what to look out for when buying an accident-free used car.
