Insurance firms can’t deny accident claim citing route deviation, says SC

The Supreme Court has said that insurance companies cannot deny compensation to accident victims merely because there was deviation in route of the vehicle involved and that it was in violation of the permit.

A Bench comprising Justices Sanjay Karol and Prashant Kumar Mishra said the purpose of an insurance policy in the present context was to shield the owner/operator from direct liability when such an unforeseen/unfortunate incident took place.

"To deny the victim/dependants of the victim compensation simply because the accident took place outside the bounds of the permit and, therefore, is outside the purview of the insurance policy, would be offensive to the sense of justice, for the accident itself is for no fault of his. Then, the insurance company most certainly ought to pay," the bench said.

The top court made the observation while while dismissing appeals filed by a vehicle owner and insurer, The New India Insurance Company Limited.

On October 7, 2014, a motorcyclist was hit by the offending vehicle being driven in a rash and negligent manner, resulting in his death on the spot.

The Motor Accident Claims Tribunal awarded an amount of Rs 18.86 lakh as compensation along with interest.

Being aggrieved with the amount of compensation awarded, the petitioner filed an appeal before the Karnataka High Court on the grounds that the compensation was not correctly calculated by the tribunal.

The insurance company also challenged the tribunal's order on the grounds of violation by the insurer of the conditions enumerated in the policy. The high court directed the insurance company to satisfy the award as passed by the tribunal and granted the right to recover the amount from the owner of the bus.

While the insurer challenged the high court's direction to pay compensation first and later recover from the owner, the owner challenged the high court's order allowing recovery from him.