Insurance companies cannot deny compensation because of route deviation: SC
New Delhi (PTI): The Supreme Court has said that insurance companies cannot deny compensation to accident victims merely because there was deviation in route of the vehicle involved and that it was in violation of the permit.
A bench comprising Justices Sanjay Karol and Prashant Kumar Mishra said the purpose of an insurance policy in the present context is to shield the owner/operator from direct liability when such an unforeseen/unfortunate incident takes place.
"To deny the victim/dependents of the victim compensation simply because the accident took place outside the bounds of the permit and, therefore, is outside the purview of the insurance policy, would be offensive to the sense of justice, for the accident itself is for no fault of his. Then, the insurance company most certainly ought to pay," the bench said.
The top court made the observation while while dismissing appeals filed by a vehicle owner and insurer, The New India Insurance Company Limited.
On October 7, 2014, a motorcyclist was hit by the offending vehicle being driven in a rash and negligent manner, resulting in his death on the spot.
The Motor Accident Claims Tribunal awarded an amount of Rs 18.86 lakh as compensation along with interest.
Being aggrieved with the amount of compensation awarded, the petitioner filed an appeal before the Karnataka High Court on the grounds that the compensation was
not correctly calculated by the Tribunal.
The insurance company also challenged the Tribunal’s order on the grounds of violation by the insurer of the conditions enumerated in the policy.
The high court directed the insurance company to satisfy the award as passed by the Tribunal and granted the right to recover the amount from the owner of the bus.
While the insurer challenged the high court's direction to pay compensation first and later recover from the owner, the owner challenged the high court's order allowing recovery from him.
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Rupee falls 9 paise to all-time low of 90.58 against US dollar in early trade
Mumbai (PTI): Rupee depreciated 9 paise to an all-time low of 90.58 against US dollar in early trade on Monday, weighed down by uncertainty over an India-US trade deal and persistent foreign fund outflows.
Forex traders said rupee is trading with a negative bias as investors are in wait and watch mode and awaiting cues from the India-US trade deal front.
At the interbank foreign exchange market, the rupee opened at 90.53 against the US dollar, then fell further to an all-time intraday low of 90.58 against the greenback, registering a fall of 9 paise over its previous close.
On Friday, the rupee had slipped 17 paise to close at an all-time low of 90.49 against the American currency.
Meanwhile, the dollar index, which gauges the greenback's strength against a basket of six currencies, was trading 0.05 per cent lower at 98.35.
Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, was trading higher by 0.52 per cent at USD 61.44 per barrel in futures trade.
On the domestic equity market front, the 30-share benchmark index Sensex was trading 298.86 points lower at 84,968.80, while the Nifty was down 121.40 points at 25,925.55.
Foreign Institutional Investors sold equities worth Rs 1,114.22 crore on Friday, according to exchange data.
"FPIs continue to be in selling mode in equity and debt while RBI has been selling dollars to fund their long positions," said Anil Kumar Bhansali, Head of Treasury and Executive Director Finrex Treasury Advisors LLP.
