Karnataka State Consumer Commission Upholds Condonation Of 7-Year Delay In Motor Insurance Claim Dispute
Pranav B Prem
The Karnataka State Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission, Bengaluru, has declined to interfere with an order of the District Consumer Commission condoning a delay of seven years and twenty-eight days in filing a consumer complaint relating to a motor insurance claim. Dismissing the appeal filed by SBI General Insurance Company Limited, the State Commission held that the reasons furnished by the complainant were just and proper and that the dispute deserved to be adjudicated on merits.
The appeal was heard by a Bench comprising Karnataka State Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission President Ravishankar and Member Sunita C. Bagewadi. The insurer had challenged the District Commission’s order dated 14 June 2024, by which the delay in filing the complaint had been condoned and the complaint admitted for consideration.
The dispute arises out of an own-damage insurance claim in respect of a Ford Figo car bearing registration number KA-27-M-4761, owned by the complainant, Kavita, who is a government servant. The vehicle was insured with SBI General Insurance Company Limited during the relevant policy period. After the vehicle sustained damage, the complainant lodged a claim with the insurer. As the claim was not settled, the matter was referred to the Permanent Lok Adalat in 2016.
The proceedings before the Permanent Lok Adalat did not result in a settlement. By an order dated 1 September 2018, the Permanent Lok Adalat permitted withdrawal of the proceedings with liberty to the complainant to approach the appropriate forum for redressal. Subsequently, in June 2024, the complainant approached the District Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission, Belgaum, along with an application seeking condonation of delay in filing the complaint. The District Commission allowed the application and admitted the complaint.
Aggrieved by the said order, the insurance company approached the State Commission, contending that the District Commission had mechanically condoned an inordinate delay without assigning cogent reasons. It was argued that Section 69 of the Consumer Protection Act, 2019 prescribes a limitation period of two years from the date of accrual of the cause of action, and that the District Commission had failed to examine whether sufficient cause existed for condoning such a prolonged delay. On this basis, the insurer sought setting aside of the order and dismissal of the complaint as time-barred.
After examining the record, including the order sheet, pleadings and the affidavit filed in support of the application for condonation of delay, the State Commission noted that the complainant had earlier pursued remedies before the Permanent Lok Adalat, which had expressly granted liberty to approach the appropriate forum. The Commission also took note of the sworn affidavit filed by the complainant, which disclosed reasons for the delay, including the relaxation of limitation during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The State Commission observed that there was no false or misleading statement made by the complainant regarding the delay in approaching the consumer forum. Significantly, it also noted that the insurance company had not satisfactorily explained why the own-damage claim was neither settled nor formally repudiated during the intervening period.
Holding that the District Commission had rightly accepted the reasons assigned in the affidavit, the State Commission concluded that the delay stood validly condoned. It further held that the matter required adjudication on merits rather than being rejected at the threshold on the ground of limitation. Accordingly, the appeal was dismissed. The State Commission directed the District Consumer Commission to proceed with the complaint expeditiously and to decide the matter on merits after affording both parties an opportunity to adduce evidence and produce relevant documents.
Cause Title: SBI General Insurance Company Ltd. v. Kavita
Case No.: Appeal No. 2838/2024
Coram: President Ravishankar and Member Sunita C. Bagewadi
