Court rules against road users, but AfriForum’s legal battle is far from over

30 October 2023

The High Court in Pretoria today dismissed AfriForum’s application that the regulation around the expiry of driver’s licenses should be revised. This means that driving licenses will currently only remain valid for five years. AfriForum’s legal team is investigating the possibility of appealing. The civil rights organisation argues that the National Road Traffic Act 93 of 1996 is contrary to the 5-year validity period and leaves no room for a regulation that stipulates that license cards expire, but the application was dismissed on a technicality.

The application was heard on 8 August and the verdict was announced today. According to judge AJ Strijdom’s judgment, AfriForum should have brought the application within 180 days after the regulation was issued 23 years ago and is therefore not admissible.

According to Louis Boshoff, Campaign Officer at AfriForum, the decision is a slap in the face of responsible drivers in South Africa. “This court ruling validates the Department of Transport's license to underperform, which never expires. The department is unable to issue license cards on time, but law-abiding citizens are then fined for it,” says Boshoff.

Boshoff further argues that it is unfortunate that on a technical point the court refused condonation for the “late” filing of the review application instead of dealing with the merits of the case. The contradiction in the law is obvious.

AfriForum has received several complaints from individuals who do not receive their renewed license cards from the Department of Transport on time. This results in them being fined despite every effort to remain legally licensed. The department’s license card printer has often broken down in recent years and it is clear that licenses continue to expire faster than new ones are printed.

“The Department of Transport can no longer distinguish between competent and incompetent drivers – they have failed the largest driver’s license test in the country,” concludes Boshoff.

Issued by Louis Boshoff, Campaign Officer, AfriForum, 30 October 2023