The kin of an insurance policy-holder with an alias as his name on the driving licence and vehicle registration were awarded compensation after a consumer forum found that the insurance company was unable to disprove that the person is one and the same. The company had claimed that the policy-holder did not have a valid driving licence and thus denied the claim.
The forum was dealing with a complaint filed by Banda Suguna, 29, and her son Banda Luke Charan Poul, 8, residents of Mahabubnagar. In the petition, the complainant stated that in May 2014, her husband, who had paid an amount for personal accident claims, succumbed to injuries after his two-wheeler hit a pig. She soon filed a claim for ₹1 lakh, but the insurer and opposite party L&T General Insurance Company Limited denied knowledge of the accident.
In the counter, it contended that the deceased did not have a valid driving licence and personal details mentioned on a copy of the documents did not tally with other records. It also stated that not holding a valid driving licence bars an individual from claiming personal accident insurance.
The forum noted that the details did not match, but stated that the counsel for the complainants had pointed out that while name of the deceased may be different on the driving licence and vehicle registration certificate, it was in fact the same person. The counsel supported his argument by citing an order of the A.P. High Court which held that “burden lies on insurer to prove the allegation that the driver of offending vehicle was having valid licence to exonerate from liability by escaping the authority who issued certificate”. The forum stated that the opposite party did not examine this aspect.
In the judgment, the forum stated that the burden of disproving the counsel’s argument lies on the opposite parties. It also stated that the company filed as exhibit a photocopy of the driver’s licence and registration certificate instead of certified copies. The forum directed the company to pay ₹1 lakh as policy claim, ₹30,000 compensation and ₹5,000 as litigation costs.
