OrInformation about the incident in insurance matters –an essential factor

 

Recently Apex court Supreme court in its landmark judgment in case of Gurshinder Singh v/s Shriram General insurance Company Ltd &Others civil appeal no 653/2020 decided on 24.1.2020  in insurance matter and specifically in theft of vehicle case held Sriram General Insurance company unreasonable in rejecting the claim when insured gave late intimation to the insurance company.Insurance company just blindly closed the claim file on the very point of late intimation of theft without appreciating the fact that claim could arise only after police gives no trace certificate . In case insurance company does not wait for police final report ,it obtains letter of subrogation from the insured which creates insurance company claim in case vefihcle is recoverd by the police . Police machinery had been activated  and is in motion the very first day of theft by making FIR with the police . It was not a case where insured intentionally kept insurance company in dark .Supreme court observed that insurance company has right to make its own finding also but police investigation is an investigation by state machinery and the fact and findings of police no way can be ignored . More so ,surveyor of the company also found from its investigation that the fact of theft is very well established through the circumstancial evidences . If it so ,why insurance company should insist that they are deprived of their right to investigate in the absence of timely information  information

Supreme court in this judgment divided the policy in two catagories

·         In the matters related to accidents

·         In the matters related to theft

In matter related to accidents surveyor is required to check the vehicle and other surrounings without waste time In theft matter search of vehicle is the first step to be taken which can be done by bringing police to motion by filing FIR . Hence filing FIR is more impotrtant than coming to insurance company for this purpose

After this judgment delivered in January 2020, National commission had an occasion to deal with similar case named as  United India Insurance Co. & Others  V/S Sushil Kumar Godara And Delivered Its Judgment In December 2020

 In  this case had three issues to resolve when theft of vehicle is informed late

1.      Temperary registration of the vehicle had expired

2.      Delay in intimation of theft

3.      Left vehicle unattended breaching condition of the insurance

·      On the issue of delay in information about theft ,FIR was duly filed before the police ,state machinery was brought in motion. Complainant prefereed to wait for the outcome of police verification and filed claim after police issued no trace certificate .

·         As per National commission observations ,expiry of temporary registration  is a subject matter of motor vehicle act and insurance is to nothing to do with it. Vehicle is temporary registered and permanent registration is to take process

·         Vehicle was parked outside the guest house which was in a residential area and that was the only system of oarking vehicles and it could not be said to be left unattended in any manner

 All the things were well explained and justified ,hence there was no point to repudiate its claim .

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