The Motor Accident Claims Tribunal has awarded a compensation of ₹62 lakh to the family of a 30-year-old woman who died in 2017 owing to injuries sustained in an accident in 2012.
S.C. Chandak, the chairman of the tribunal, has directed the car’s owner and the insurance company to jointly or severally pay the amount at 7.5% interest per annum from June 2014, the date of application, to the victim’s parents.
At midnight on March 25, 2012, the car rammed into an autorickshaw in Malad and the driver and occupants of the auto: Charu Khandal, her friend and her sister suffered serious injuries. Around ₹20 lakh was spent on Khandal’s treatment for cervical spinal-cord injuries, which led to quadriplegia. She was earning ₹30,000 a month and claimed a compensation of ₹5 crore on account of permanent disability. She died on January 17, 2017 and her family impleaded themselves as the applicants to the claim.
No one appeared for the driver and the insurer said it was a case of contributory negligence. The company also said the driver was under the influence of alcohol and it breached the terms and conditions of the insurance policy.
The 37-page judgment mentioned the break-up of the compensation: loss of dependency: ₹38,55,600, conventional heads: ₹1,21,000, medical bills: ₹20,27,910, attendant charges: ₹1,25,000, toiletries: ₹50,000, and conveyance: ₹40,000. The total amount came up to ₹62,19,510, which was rounded off to ₹62,20,000.
The tribunal said, “Rate of interest is required to suit the prevailing rate of interest at the time of accident and in this matter, the accident occurred in the year 2014. There is no strait jacket formula for awarding interest at a particular rate. It depends on the facts and circumstances of each case. Having regard to the year of accident, grant of interest @ 7.5% p.a. will be just and proper. Accordingly, applicants are entitled for receiving compensation of ₹62,20,000 with interest from the date of application till realisation.”
