Kupwara Consumer Commission: Bajaj Allianz Liable for Unfair Trade Practice in Failing to Settle Genuine Insurance Claim
Pranav B Prem
The Kupwara District Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission, comprising Peerzada Qousar Hussain (President) and Nyla Yaseen (Member), has held Bajaj Allianz General Insurance Company Ltd. and its authorised officer liable for unfair trade practice for failing to settle the genuine insurance claim of a complainant whose insured vehicle met with an accident during the subsistence of the policy.
The complaint was filed by Irfan Ahmad Dar, owner of a TATA Sumo bearing Registration No. JK09-5701, insured under policy number 09-16-1205-1812-00000620, valid from 18 April 2015 to 17 April 2016. On 19 March 2016, while the vehicle was plying from Vilgam to Handwara, it met with an accident at Sirajpora. An FIR (No. 23/16) was lodged, and the vehicle sustained severe damage. The complainant submitted all requisite documents, including a translated FIR, mechanical inspection report, and repair bills, to the insurer’s appointed surveyor. Despite this, the insurer failed to settle the claim, causing financial distress and mental agony to the complainant, who depended on the vehicle as his only source of income and was unable to repay the loan taken for it.
The insurer repudiated the claim, alleging violation of policy terms. It contended that the route permit for the vehicle was issued in the name of the ex-owners and not transferred to the complainant, which amounted to a breach of the requirement to possess a valid permit to ply the vehicle in public places. The insurer claimed to have informed the complainant of this via letter dated 7 February 2017, asking for a valid permit in his name covering the date of accident, which he allegedly failed to provide.
During proceedings, the complainant produced three witnesses, including himself, who testified to the accident, the existence of a valid permit, and submission of all documents to the insurer. The surveyor, appearing as a witness for the insurer, stated that he assessed the loss at ₹45,000 and found the repair bills genuine, confirming that the documents were in order at the time of survey. Another insurer’s witness admitted that the permit was valid until 12 May 2021 but in the name of the previous owners, and that it was not renewed between 12 May 2016 and 20 October 2017. However, there was no concrete evidence proving that the vehicle lacked a valid permit on the date of the accident.
The Commission observed that the insurer had a statutory duty to process and settle the claim within a reasonable time after registration, which it failed to do despite receipt of all required documents. It further noted that the insurer had not produced convincing evidence of any deliberate breach of the policy terms by the complainant. The refusal to settle the claim, therefore, amounted to an unfair trade practice under the Consumer Protection Act, 2019.
Allowing the complaint, the Commission directed Bajaj Allianz to:
Pay the sum assured to the complainant within four weeks, along with interest at 5% from the date of institution of the complaint till the date of order.
Pay ₹1,00,000 as compensation for mental agony and indulging in unfair trade practice.
Pay ₹20,000 as litigation charges.
The insurer was given four weeks from receipt of the order to comply.
Appearance
Adv. Shah Khalid & Adv. Tawseef Ahmad Shah for the complainant.
Adv Zubair Ahmad Wani for OP’s.
Cause Title: Irfan Ahmad V. Bajaj Allianz General Insurance Company
Case No: Consumer Complaint No. 14/2017
Coram: Peerzada Qousar Hussain [President], Nyla Yaseen [Member]
