FAO--842/2009. Case: RAJESH TYAGI & ORS Vs. RAMESH CHANDRA GUPTA & ANR.. High Court of Delhi (India)
| Case Number | FAO--842/2009 |
| Citation | NA |
| Judgement Date | November 07, 2014 |
| Court | High Court of Delhi (India) |
$-2 & 3 * IN THE HIGH COURT OF DELHI AT NEW DELHI
+ FAO No.842/2009
% Date of decision: 07th November, 2014
RAJESH TYAGI & ORS. ..... Appellants
Through: Nemo.
versus
RAMESH CHANDRA GUPTA & ANR. .... Respondents Through: Ms. Lakshita Sethi for Mr. Anup. J.
Bhambhani, Amicus Curiae
Mr. Sanjay Jain, ASG with Mr. Kirtiman Singh, CGSC, Mr. Ali Noor and Ms. Astha Jain, Advocate for UOI
AND
MAC. APP. No.422/2009
SOBAT SINGH ..... Appellants Through: Ms. Sandhya Singh, Advocate for
Mr. Kishan Nautiyal, Advocate
versus
RAMESH CHANDRA GUPTA & ANR. .... Respondents Through: Mr. Kanwal Chaudhary, Advocate for Insurance Company
Mr. O.P. Maini, Amicus Curiae Mr. Sanjay Jain, ASG with Mr. Kirtiman Singh, CGSC, Mr. Noor Anand and Ms. Astha Jain, Advocate for UOI
CORAM: HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE J.R. MIDHA
J.R. MIDHA, J. (Oral)
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India has dubious distinction of having worst record of road accidents. According to the latest Road Transport Ministry report, a total of 4,90,383 road accidents were reported in 2012 resulting in 1,38,258 deaths i.e. an average of one road accident every minute resulting in one death every 3.8 minutes which is highest in the world. Road accidents are a human tragedy which involves high human suffering and they impose huge socio-economic costs in terms of untimely deaths, injuries and loss of potential income. The ramifications of road accidents can be colossal and its negative impact is felt not only on individuals and their families but also on the economy. According to the report of World Health Organization, the road accidents constitute highest cause of death in the age group of 15 to 29 and third highest in the age group of 30 to 42. Consequently, road safety is an important issue of national concern.
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The victims of the road accident are doubly unfortunate, first in getting involved in an accident and second, in not getting compensation. In developed countries, insurance companies, immediately, upon being notified of the accident, make their inquiries, voluntarily assess and pay the compensation to the
victim. The matters go to the Court only where the insurance company denies the claim or where the victim is not satisfied with the quantum of compensation paid.
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The Insurance Companies in our country are aware of this procedure and they actually implement the same in all cases of loss/damage other than the cases of injury/death in road accident cases. If a car is damaged in an accident, the Insurance Company immediately appoints a surveyor who inspects the vehicle on the same day, takes the photographs, the estimates the loss and give instructions to the workshop for repair of the vehicle within 24 hours. The payment of the expenses on the repair of the vehicle is paid directly to the workshop.
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In case of death of victims of road accident, the principles of calculation of compensation are well settled. The age, income of the victim and the number of dependants of the deceased victim have to be verified to compute the compensation. These three things can be easily ascertained upon visit to the house of the deceased victim immediately after the accident. At the time of grief, there would not be any possibility of manipulation/exaggeration and the compensation on that basis could be tendered to the family of the deceased victim. In the case of injury, the visit to the hospital and statement of the Medical Superintendent can give a very clear estimate of the expenditure likely to be incurred on the treatment which can be tendered to the victim immediately. However, the helpless victims are compelled to approach the Motor Accident Claims Tribunal, where the cases
proceed like normal civil suits and it takes years to adjudicate the matter.
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In Rajesh Tyagi v. Jaibir Singh, IV (2010) ACC 847, this Court, vide order dated 5th November, 2009, appointed a Committee comprising of Secretaries of the Ministries of Road Transport and Highways; Finance (Department of Insurance); Law & Justice and Company Affairs; and Joint Commissioner of Delhi Police to evolve a mechanism for time-bound settlement of motor accident claims within 90 to 120 days. The said Committee consulted all the seventeen Insurance Companies and submitted a report whereupon this Court formulated a “ Claims Tribunal Agreed Procedure ” which came into force in National Capital Territory of Delhi with effect from 2nd April, 2010.
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The ‘Claims Tribunal Agreed Procedure’ provides: first, the police to carry out complete investigation within 30 days and submit a Detailed Accident Report (DAR) to the Motor Accident Claims Tribunal; second, the Insurance company to compute the compensation within 30 days thereafter and inform the Tribunal; third, if the amount offered is fair and acceptable to the claimant, it shall be paid within 30 days; and fourth, if the offer is not acceptable or the Tribunal finds it not fair, the Tribunal shall pass an award within 30 days, meaning thereby that the claimants shall get the award amount within 90 to 120 days of the accident.
Salient Features of the Claims Tribunal Agreed Procedure
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The salient features of the Claims Tribunal Agreed Procedure formulated vide order dated 21stDecember, 2009 in Rajesh Tyagi v. Jaibir Singh , IV (2010) ACC 859 are as under:
7.1 Investigation of road accident cases by the police Immediately on receipt of the information of a road accident, the Investigating Officer of Police shall inspect the site of accident, take photographs of the site of the accident from all angles and prepare a site plan, drawn to scale, as to indicate the lay-out and width, etc., of the road(s) or place, as the case may be, the position of vehicle(s), or person(s) involved, and such other facts as may be relevant so as to preserve the evidence in this regard. The Investigating Officer shall conduct spot enquiry by examining the eye-witnesses/bystanders.
7.2 Intimation of accident shall be given to the Claims Tribunal and Insurance Company within 48 hours
The Investigating Officer shall intimate the factum of the accident to the Claims Tribunal within 48 hours of the accident. If the particulars of insurance are available, the intimation of the accident shall also be given to the concerned Insurance Company of the offending vehicle. The particulars of the accident shall also be uploaded on the website of Delhi Police.
7.3 Information/documents to be collected by the Investigating Officer
The Investigating Officer shall gather the following particulars and documents:-
(i) Date, time and place of the accident.
(ii) Particulars of the persons injured or deceased in the accident.
(iii) Names and address of the driver of the offending vehicle.
(iv) Driving license of the driver of the offending vehicle.
(v) Names and address of the owner of the offending vehicle.
(vi) Certificate of registration of the offending vehicle.
(vii) Insurance Policy/Cover note/Certificate of insurance of the offending vehicle.
(viii) Fitness certificate and the permit (in the case of a commercial vehicle).
(ix) Names and addresses of the witnesses of the accident.
(x) Circumstances of the occurrence of the accident.
(xi) In case of death:
(a) Proof of age of the deceased.
(b) Death certificate.
(c) Post mortem report.
(d) Proof of income of the deceased.
(e) Details of the dependents, i.e. their age, occupation and marital status.
(f) Expenditure on treatment.
(xii) In case of an injury:
(a) Medico Legal Certificate (MLC).
(b) Proof of age of the injured.
(c) Proof of income of the injured.
(d) Nature of injuries suffered.
(e) Treatment taken by the injured including the discharge summary.
(f) Disability certificate.
(g) Expenditure on treatment.
(h) Proof of absence from work [where loss of income on account of injury is being claimed] such as certificate from the employer and extracts from the attendance register or log record or like records.
7.4 Verification of the documents by the Investigating Officer The Investigating Officer shall verify the authenticity of the documents mentioned above by obtaining confirmation in writing from the office or authority or person purporting to have issued the same or by such further investigation or verification as may be necessary for arriving at a conclusion of authenticity of the documents in question, including but not limited to verifying the license of the driver and permit of the vehicle, where applicable, from the registering authority.
7.5 Duty of the registration authorities to verify the documents within 15 days of the application
The Registration authorities shall verify the registration certificate, driving licence, fitness and permit in respect of the offending vehicle within 15 days of the application being made by the Investigating Officer.
7.6 Duty of the hospital to issue MLC and Post-mortem Report within 15 days of the accident
The concerned hospital shall issue the MLC and Post-Mortem Report to the Investigating Officer within 15 days of the accident.
7.7 Duty of the police to complete the investigation of the criminal case and file the chargesheet (Report under Section 173 Cr.P.C.) before the Metropolitan Magistrate and to file DAR along with copy of the chargesheet before the Claims Tribunal within 30 days
The Investigating Officer shall complete the collection of the aforesaid documents and its verification as well as investigation of the criminal case within 30 days of the accident. The Investigating Officer shall file the report under Section 173 Cr.P.C. before the concerned Magistrate and Detailed Accidental Report (DAR) before the Claims Tribunal within 30 days of the accident. The DAR shall be accompanied by requisite documents which shall include copy of the report under Section 173 Cr.P.C, FIR, MLC, Post-Mortem Report (in case of death), photographs, site plan, mechanical inspection report, seizure memos and documents mentioned in the DAR as also a report regarding confirmation of authenticity thereof otherwise action taken. Copy of the DAR shall...
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