The American journalist James Surowiecki avers that, “in the business world, bad news is usually good news – for somebody else”. This is reminiscent of, but perhaps less dramatic than, the Dutch saying, De een z’n dood is de ander z’n brood, which translates as “One man’s death is another man’s bread”. It actually explains that the misfortune of one person can be to the advantage of another.

Ever wondered why bad news travels faster and wider than good news? In his book Buddha’s Brain: The Practical Neuroscience of Happiness, Love, and Wisdom, American psychologist Rick Hanson cites studies that have shown that the brain detects negative information faster than positive information, and stores the information differently.

I thought it would be a good idea to celebrate the change of season with good news. But where do we find good news? There are four good news websites, namely Positive News (www.positive.news); The Good News Network (www.goodnewsnetwork.org); The Optimist Daily (www.optimistdaily.com); and The Happy News (www.thehappynewspaper.com).

So, there is good news to be had. This brings to mind the idiom “every cloud has a silver lining”, which was used for the first time by John Milton in his 1634 poem, Comus: A Mask Presented at Ludlow Castle.

The glass-half-full feel of this week’s instalment of this column is attributable to the Road Accident Fund (RAF), which, according to its website, “provides compulsory cover to all users of South African roads, citizens and foreigners, against injuries sustained or death arising from accidents involving motor vehicles within the borders of South Africa”. The website goes on to add that “this cover is in the form of indemnity insurance to persons who cause the accident, as well as personal injury and death insurance to victims of motor vehicle accidents and their families”.

To contextualise, on June 6, Transport Minister Fikile Mbalula issued a media statement that revealed that the RAF had recorded a R3.2-billion surplus for the period ending March 2021. Consider the numbers. The RAF collects R43-billion through the fuel levy. If this number does not hit home, then let me break it down and tell you how it hits your pocket. Every time you fill your car with fuel, you contribute R2.07 per litre to the RAF. The average-size fuel tank is 45 𝓵, which means you pay R93.15 every time you fill your tank.

Of the R43-billion, an amount of R17-billion, or 40%, is spent on administration costs, which leaves only R26-billion, or 60% of the annual revenue, for the compensation of claimants. Of the R17-billion, R10.6-billion is spent on legal costs, and more than R2-billion on medical costs.

As for the dark side of the cloud, it is the accumulation of road accidents which has been further exacerbated by a number of fraudulent claims to the RAF. But there is an even darker side of the cloud, as “the model that the RAF operated on was centred on litigation, with 99% of the claims settled just before trial”. Why? Surely, it should be in the public interest to publish these. What has happened to the principle of naming and shaming?

As a consequence, “the legal costs had been growing exponentially over the years, from R800-million in 2008 to R10.6-billion in 2019”. In case you have not been counting or have simply lost count, that is 1 225%. Yes, one thousand two hundred and twenty-five per cent.