The Supreme Court has ruled that a truck owner is entitled to an insurance claim even if the national permit authorization fee for interstate movement was unpaid.
It overturned the National Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission’s (NCDRC) decision, which had denied the claim.
The insurer had rejected the claim for a fire-damaged truck, citing non-payment of the authorization fee. The NCDRC upheld this denial.
However, the Supreme Court clarified that non-payment of such fees does not invalidate the insurance policy.
The Court has directed the insurance company to pay the claim amount along with 9% interest from the date of complaint.
Chetna Gupta
The Lucknow Consumer Commission dismissed a fraudulent ₹29 lakh insurance claim for an alleged Mercedes-Benz theft against ICICI Lombard, imposing a ₹10 lakh penalty on the complainant.
Investigations revealed gross negligence. The vehicle was purchased for ₹3.70 lakh, from its previous owner P&G Enterprises Pvt. Ltd. but was insured at an inflated value before being falsely reported stolen.
The court flagged suspicious financial transactions and directed the Crime Branch of Gautam Buddha Nagar to investigate.
The Court ordered that the complainant is required to deposit the penalty in the CM’s Disaster Relief Fund within a month or face recovery proceedings.
Chetna Gupta