Insurance Company Liable to Pay Compensation Even If Driver Was Intoxicated: Madras High Court

The Madras HC has ruled that an insurance company must pay compensation to the family of a deceased accident victim, even if the driver was intoxicated at the time of the accident.

Hearing the matter, the court relied on a Kerala HC's ruling in Muhammed Rashid @ Rashid v. Girivasan E.K, which held that an insurer cannot deny compensation to third-party victims based on policy violations by the driver.

Instead, the insurance company must pay the compensation first and recover it from the vehicle owner.

The Court enhanced the compensation from ₹27.65 lakh to ₹30.25 lakh with 7.5% interest and directed the insurance company to deposit the amount within six weeks.