Page 49 - Insurance Times JUNE 2022

Vehicle Insurance

SC wants insurance firms to develop app Two provisions of Motor Vehicles Act
A third-party insurance claim can be filed invoking two pro-
for accident claims — what it is & how
visions of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988: sections 166 and
it’ll help 163A.
The Supreme Court fixed a two-month deadline for the Gen-
Under section 163A, there is a straitjacket formula for com-
eral Insurance Council (GIC) to develop a mobile app for
pensation with no provision to contest such claims. While
speedy settlement of third-party claims for compensation
Rs 5 lakh can be demanded in case of a death, Rs 2.5 lakh
in case of road accidents. Police would have to upload the
is the fixed amount paid in case an accident causes perma-
details of the accident on the app within 48 hours of it tak-
nent disability.
ing place.
Although this is a speedy process for settling compensation
The police must then file a detailed report within 90 days.
claims in accident cases, victims and their families don’t
After this, insurance companies would have 30 days to com-
usually opt for it due to the ceiling fixed on the claim
pensate the claimant with a fixed amount, or else fight it
amount.
out in court.
Experts working in the field of MACT cases told ThePrint
A bench led by Justice Sanjay Kishan Kaul rejected GIC’s plea
that victims and their families demand higher compensa-
or “some enlarged time” to develop the app, saying that if
tion, for which section 166 applications are filed. Such
the insurance companies are not able to do it, the court
claims are usually contested by the insurance companies,
would call upon the government to do so, and impose the
leading to a trial as in a civil case.
app on the insurance companies.
“Compensation sought under this provision is calculated on
The top court order of 16 November is an outcome of 10-
the basis of factors such as the age of the victim, his or her
month-long deliberations on how to expedite cases of com-
income, and number of dependents. With younger victims
pensation pending before the Motor Accident Claims Tri-
and higher incomes, the compensation can go up to
bunal (MACT).
crores,” explained a lawyer.
In its order, the court noted that the bulk of MACT cases
The claimants in MACT cases, who generally don’t come
were pending in various MACT courts across the country,
from affluent backgrounds, tend to take their time to file
with more than 25 per cent being over three years old.
claims.
Thirty-five per cent of all cases pending in Maharashtra’s
The new app
trial courts are insurance claims arising from motor acci-
dents, the order also noted. The new app will, however, make it compulsory for the
police to upload the details of the accident within 48 hours
Following an earlier order issued on 26 October, all stake-
of it taking place. This information will immediately be fed
holders such as the police, insurance companies and MACT
into the system of the insurance company with which the
courts will have to use the application once it is developed.
offending vehicle is insured, and also the MACT court in
The Print explains how this app will speed up the disposal whose jurisdiction the accident takes place.
of compensation cases.
The Insurance Times, June 2022 49