1 Developing the South African law of delict

363 Pages·2017·2.85 MB·English

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Developing the South African law of delict: the creation of a statutory
compensation fund for crime victims
Albertus Bernardus Wessels
Dissertation presented for the degree of Doctor of Laws in the Faculty of Law
at Stellenbosch University
Supervisors: Professor Max Loubser and Professor Jacques du Plessis
March 2018
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DECLARATION
By submitting this dissertation electronically, I declare that the entirety of the work
contained therein is my own, original work, that I am the sole author thereof (save to
the extent explicitly otherwise stated), that reproduction and publication thereof by
Stellenbosch University will not infringe any third party rights and that I have not
previously in its entirety or in part submitted it for obtaining any qualification.
Albertus Bernardus Wessels
March 2018
Copyright © 2018 Stellenbosch University
All rights reserved
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SUMMARY
The dissertation evaluates the compensatory relief South African law currently
provides to victims of crime. To obtain compensation for the harm arising from crime,
a victim may institute a common-law delictual claim against the perpetrator of the
crime. Because the perpetrator is unlikely to be in a financial position to compensate
the victim’s harm, crime victims frequently frame actions against the state, not only on
the basis of vicarious liability for positive wrongdoing by state employees, but
increasingly on the basis of failure by the state or its employees to prevent crime. This
dissertation describes the expanding delictual liability of the state for harm caused by
crime and concludes that this development of the law of delict is both theoretically and
practically undesirable. The dissertation further argues that the existing statutory
mechanisms to claim compensation for harm arising from crime is unsatisfactory and
provides little assistance to crime victims.
Within this framework the dissertation considers whether there is an alternative
method to secure compensation for the hundreds of thousands of South Africans who
fall victim to crime each year. The most common solution adopted in foreign
jurisdictions is the establishment of a statutory compensation fund for crime victims.
The dissertation seeks to establish whether the legislative reform of the South African
law of delict through the creation of such a fund is justified and appropriate.
To do so, the dissertation analyses the historical background and policy bases of other
significant instances of legislative reform of the South African law of delict. In the
process, a general theoretical framework is developed that may provide an outline for
statutory reform of the law of delict to provide compensation for specific categories of
victims.
The dissertation thereafter examines whether the establishment of a statutory crime
victim compensation fund could fit within this proposed theoretical framework. It is
concluded that the proposed fund is justifiable and, when compared to the solutions
offered by the current developments within the common-law of delict and existing
legislation, it seems, in principle, to be a more desirable solution to improve the legal
position regarding compensation of crime victims.
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To be successful, the proposed statutory compensation scheme must be theoretically
sound and practically workable. The dissertation therefore concludes by focusing on
several practical questions and considerations which the South African legislature
should take into account, if it were to enact such a scheme.

OPSOMMING
Die verhandeling evalueer die wyse waarop die Suid-Afrikaanse regstelsel tans
vergoeding bied aan die slagoffers van misdaad. Om die skade voortspruitend uit
misdaad te vergoed, kan ʼn slagoffer ʼn gemeenregtelike deliktuele eis teen die
oortreder instel. Aangesien dit onwaarskynlik is dat die oortreder in 'n finansiële posisie
sal wees om die slagoffer se skade te vergoed, stel misdaadslagoffers gereeld eise in
teen die staat, nie bloot op die basis van middellike aanspreeklikheid vir positiewe
delikte van staatswerknemers nie, maar toenemend op grond van die versuim van die
staat of sy werknemers om misdaad te voorkom. Die proefskrif beskryf die uitbreiding
van die deliktuele aanspreeklikheid van die staat vir skade veroorsaak deur misdaad
en kom tot die gevolgtrekking dat hierdie ontwikkeling van die deliktereg sowel
teoreties as prakties onwenslik is. Die verhandeling argumenteer verder dat die
bestaande statutêre meganismes om vergoeding te eis vir skade wat uit misdaad
ontstaan onbevredigend is en min bystand verleen aan misdaadslagoffers.
Binne hierdie raamwerk word dit oorweeg of daar ʼn alternatiewe metode is om
vergoeding te verseker vir die honderde duisende Suid-Afrikaners wat elke jaar
slagoffers van misdaad is. Die mees algemene oplossing wat in buitelandse
jurisdiksies toegepas word, is die vestiging van ʼn statutêre vergoedingsfonds vir
misdaadslagoffers. Die verhandeling beoog om vas te stel of die wetgewende
ontwikkeling van die Suid-Afrikaanse deliktereg deur die skepping van ʼn
vergoedingsfonds vir misdaadslagoffers geregverdig en gepas is.
Om dit te doen, ontleed die proefskrif die historiese agtergrond en beleidsbasis van
ander belangrike voorbeelde van wetgewende hervorming van die Suid-Afrikaanse
deliktereg. In die proses word ʼn algemene teoretiese raamwerk ontwikkel wat ʼn basis
kan bied vir statutêre hervorming van die deliktereg om voorsiening te maak vir die
vergoeding van spesifieke kategorieë slagoffers.
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Die verhandeling ondersoek dan of die vestiging van ʼn statutêre
misdaadslagoffervergoedingsfonds binne hierdie voorgestelde teoretiese raamwerk
kan pas. Daar word tot die gevolgtrekking gekom dat die voorgestelde fonds
geregverdig kan word en dit wil voorkom asof die vestiging van sodanige fonds, in
vergelyking met die oplossings wat gebied word deur die huidige ontwikkeling in die
deliktereg en bestaande wetgewing, in beginsel, ʼn meer wenslike oplossing is om die
regsposisie met betrekking tot skadevergoeding van misdaadslagoffers te verbeter.
Ten einde suksesvol te wees, moet die voorgestelde statutêre vergoedingskema
teoreties gegrond en prakties werkbaar wees. Die proefskrif sluit dus af deur te fokus
op verskeie praktiese vrae en oorwegings wat die Suid-Afrikaanse wetgewer in ag
behoort te neem as die voorgestelde vergoedingskema vir misdaadslagoffers
inderdaad geskep sou word.
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ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

I would like to express my sincere thanks and appreciation to my supervisors,
Professor Max Loubser and Professor Jacques du Plessis, for their valuable guidance
and scholarly inputs. Without their direction and feedback, this dissertation would not
have been achievable.
I am also grateful to my parents, Francois and Adré Wessels. They have supported
and encouraged me in all my pursuits and motivated me in the writing of this
dissertation. Thank you also to the rest of my family and all my friends, for your love
and friendship.
Finally, thank you to my wife, Catrina, who has endured the presence of this
dissertation in our life, and who has been a source of inspiration and motivation in this
journey. She has been very supportive and patient and her contribution to the
successful completion of this dissertation is fondly acknowledged.
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INDEX

1. INTRODUCTION………………………………………………………………….8

2. A DESCRIPTION AND EVALUATION OF THE CURRENT

SOUTH AFRICAN LEGAL POSITION REGARDING THE

COMPENSATION OF HARM SUFFERED BY CRIME VICTIMS …………..31

3. LEGAL AND PUBLIC POLICY CONSIDERATIONS
THAT JUSTIFY LEGISLATIVE DEVELOPMENT OF THE LAW
OF DELICT………………………………………………………………………..127

4. JUSTIFYING THE LEGISLATIVE DEVELOPMENT OF
THE LAW OF DELICT BY ESTABLISHING
A STATUTORY COMPENSATION FUND FOR CRIME VICTIMS………...189

5. PRACTICAL CONSIDERATIONS THAT ARE RELEVANT
WHEN DEVELOPING A STATUTORY COMPENSATION FUND
FOR CRIME VICTIMS…………………………………………………………...239

6. CONCLUSIONS……………………………………………………………….....326

7. BIBLIOGRAPHY………………………………………………………………....339
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CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION

1.1 Setting the scene: a crime epidemic and the need for an appropriate
legal response……………………………………………………………….……….10

1.2 The need for crime victim compensation…………………………………………..13

1.3 The compensation of crime victims in the South African legal system:
a brief overview………………………………………………………………………14

1.4 The expansion of state delictual liability for harm arising from crime……………15

1.5 Investigating alternative methods to secure crime victim compensation……….19

1.6 Research questions………………………………………………………………….21

1.7 Relevance of the research questions………………………………………………22

1.8 Differences between this dissertation and earlier research on the
establishment of a statutory compensation fund for crime
victims in South Africa……………………………………………………………….24

1.9 Structure of this dissertation

1.9.1 Chapter 2: A description and evaluation of the current South
African legal position regarding the compensation of harm
suffered by crime victims…………………………………………………….26
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1.9.2 Chapter 3: Legal and public policy considerations that justify
legislative development of the law of delict ……………………………….27

1.9.3 Chapter 4: Justifying the legislative development of the law of delict
by establishing a statutory compensation fund for crime victims ………..28

1.9.4 Chapter 5: Practical considerations that are relevant when developing
a statutory compensation fund for crime victims…………………………..29

1.9.5 Chapter 6: Conclusions……………………………………………………...29
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CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION
1.1 Setting the scene: a crime epidemic and the need for an appropriate legal
response
South Africa is plagued by crime.1 Violent crime, in particular, has reached epidemic
proportions. The most striking crime statistics are unequivocal. South Africa has one
of the highest murder rates in the world: 34 per 100 000 members of the population
were murdered in 2015/2016,2 with approximately 51 murders being recorded on
average per day in this period.3 And with around 1 188 assaults committed for every
100 000 members of the population, South Africa is also considered as having one of
the highest assault rates worldwide.4 Contrary to official statistics provided by the
South African Police Services (“SAPS”), independent research indicates that the
number of rapes that occur during the course of one year may be in the order of a half
million.5
Some perspective on the exceedingly high levels of crime in South Africa can be
obtained by comparing crime statistics and motor vehicle accident data: the 18 673
murders that occurred in 2015-20166 is much higher than the 13 591 people who died
as a result of motor vehicle accidents that took place in 2015,7 while the 182 933
assaults with the intent to do grievous bodily harm recorded in 2015-20168 is almost
three times more than the number of people who were seriously injured in motor
vehicle accidents in 2015 (62 520).9

1 See paragraph 4.2.3.1 in chapter 4.
2 Africa Check “Factsheet: South Africa’s 2015/2016 crime statistics” available at <https://africa
check.org/factsheets/factsheet- south-africas-201516-crime-statistics/> (accessed on 2 June 2017).
3 See paragraph 4.2.3.1 in chapter 4.
4 See paragraph 4.2.3.1 in chapter 4.
5 Although the official SAPS crime statistics for 2015-2016 indicates that 42 596 rapes were reported to
the police, this statistic has been criticised as ignoring the considerable impact of under-reporting. See
Rape Crisis Cape Town Trust “Prevalence” available at <http://rapecrisis.org.za/rape-in-south-
africa/#prevalence> (accessed on 28 June 2017); Africa Check “Rape Statistics in South Africa: A
Guide” available at <https://africacheck.org/factsheets/guide-rape-statistics-in-south-africa/>
(accessed on 28 June 2017); the Independent Police Investigative Directorate Annual Report
2012/2013 (2013) 15-16; News24 “Rape in South Africa” available at <http://www.news24.com/
MyNews24/rape-in-south-africa-20160810> (accessed on 17 July 2017).
6 SAPS Annual Crime Report 2015/2016: Addendum to the SAPS Annual Report 2015/2016 (2016)
108.
7 Road Traffic Management Corporation (“RTMC”) The Costs of Crashes in South Africa (2016) ii.
8 SAPS Annual Crime Report 2015/2016 108.
9 RTMC The Costs of Crashes in South Africa ii.