Orissa

Cuttak

CC/152/2022

Bijay Kumar Nayak - Complainant(s)

Versus

Branch Manager,Oriental Insurance Company Ltd - Opp.Party(s)

N Singh & associates

18 May 2023

ORDER

IN THE COURT OF THE DIST. CONSUMER DISPUTES REDRESSAL COMMISSION,CUTTACK.

C.C. No.152/2022

          Bijay Kumar Nayak,

           S/O:Late Gouranga Charan Nayak,

           Resident of At:Kamalpur(Badambadi),

           P.O:Arundoya Market, P.S:Badambadi,Munsif-Cuttack,

           Dist:Cuttack,Pin-753012,Odisha.                                    ... Complainant.

 

          Vrs.

 

                        The Branch Manager,

                        The Oriental Insurance Company Ltd.,

                          Cuttack City Branch-II,Bajrakabati Road,

                          P.O:Buxibazar,P.S:Mangalabag,

                          Town/Dist:Cuttack,Odisha,Pin-753001.                      … Opp. Party.

 

Present:            Sri Debasish Nayak,President.

                             Sri Sibananda Mohanty,Member.

 

Date of filing:    27.07.2022

Date of Order:  18.05.2023

 

For the complainant:                    Mr. N.Singh,Adv. & Associates.

For the O.P.                :                Mr. A.K.Bhuyani,Adv. & Associates.

 

Sri Debasish Nayak,President                

             Case of the complainant as made out from the complaint petition in short is that he had insured his vehicle bearing Regd. No.OD-05-AV-1499 with Engine No.E424CDKL308484 and Chassis No.MC2P2LRTOKL454226 through the O.P and the said policy  bearing No. 345105/31/2020/5529 was valid from 20.1.2020 till the midnight of 21.8.2021.  Due to bad luck the said vehicle was set ablaze on 11.3.2021 at about 2.20 A.M. in the dead of night.  Due to the intervention of the local people, they had doused the fire.  The cause of fire was due to mischief by some unknown culprit.  The matter was reported at the Bansada P.S in the district of Bhadrak.  When the claim was made before the O.P, a surveyor was deputed who had submitted his report but the claim has not been settled by the O.P.  It is for this, the complainant has come up with this case claiming the entire policy assured amount of Rs.26,00,000/- alongwith interest thereon @ 12% per annum since 10.3.2021 till the total amount is quantified.  The complainant has further claimed compensation to the tune of Rs.1,00,000/- towards deficiency in service, a sum of Rs.2,50,000/- towards compensation for his mental agony and harassment, a sum of Rs.1,00,000/- towards cost of his litigation, other punitive damages and interest from the O.P. The complainant has also prayed for any other reliefs as deemed just and proper.

          In order to support his case, the complainant has filed copies of several documents alongwith his complaint petition.

2.       The O.P has contested this case and has filed his written version through which he has urged that the complaint petition is not maintainable which is liable to be dismissed.  It is further mentioned by theO.P that the vehicle was used for commercial purposes.  According to the O.P, though there was insurance policy in respect of the alleged vehicle effective from 20.1.2020 till midnight of 19.1.21, the fire incident had taken place on 10.3.21 which is not within the policy coverage period.  The complainant had made a request on 5.5.2020 for extension of the insurance coverage period for six months effective from 1.4.2020 till the midnight of 31.10.2020 but he had not paid the required fee of Rs.15/- and for the said reason the policy coverage was not extended.  Thus, according to the O.P, there was no deficiency in service and rather the complainant has suppressed the material facts and had not approached this Commission with clean hands for which the O.P has stressed to dismiss the complaint petition of the complainant.

          The O.P has also filed copies of several documents in order to prove his stand.

3.       Keeping in mind the averments as made in the complaint petition and the contents of the written version of the O.P, this Commission thinks it proper to settle the following issues in order to arrive at a proper conclusion here in this case.

i.          Whether the case of the complainant is maintainable?

ii.         Whether there was any deficiency in service on the part of the O.P ?

iii.        Whether the complainant is entitled to the reliefs as claimed by him?

Issue no.ii.

Out of the three issues, issue no.ii  being the pertinent issue in this case, is taken up  first for consideration here.

After perusing the averments as made by the complainant in his complaint petition and the contents of the written version of the O.P and also after going through the available copies of documents as filed by either sides in this case, it is noticed that as per Annexure-5, which is the report of the Station Officer, Fire Station, Gadi in the district of Bhadrak  through  his letter no.312/ GADI F.S dt.13.3.2021, the fire accident took place on 11.3.2021 and accordingly he has submitted his report.  As per Annexure-7 which is the copy of the FIR as available from the police station of Bansada in the district of Bhadrak, it is noticed that the date and time of occurrence was 11.3.21 at 19.43 hours, that is to say, the vehicle of the complainant was burnt in the evening of 11.3.21 at about 7.43 p.m.  While perusing Annexure-3, which is the motor insurance certificate and policy schedule with respect to the damaged vehicle of the complainant; it is noticed that the said insurance policy was valid from 20.1.2020 till the midnight of 21.8.2, that is to say the damaged vehicle was well within the insurance coverage period while it was set ablaze.  The contention of the O.P that the insurance policy of the alleged vehicle was effective from 21.1.2020 till 19.1.2021 appears to be vague and lacks proper documentation.  Now here in this case as it appears, the surveyor has filed his survey report wherein he has assessed the total loss of the vehicle to the tune of Rs.26,00,000/- out of which after deducting the policy access amount of Rs.1500/-, the total assessed loss is of Rs.25,98,500/-. It is not understood as to when the surveyor has assessed the loss and duly submitted his report to the insurer, under what circumstances, the said money was not disbursed in favour of the complainant and it also is not explained at all by the O.P here in this case.  When without proper reason the insured amount is withhold by the O.P, it clearly signifies the deficiency in his service and also indicates the unfair trade adopted by the O.P.   It is because, the O.P had taken the plea that the fire accident of the vehicle of the complainant was not within the insurance coverage period but such plea though taken has not been proved at all by the O.P and there is absolutely no iota of evidence to that effect.   Rather, the copies of documents as filed by the complainant clearly signifies that the fire accident was well within the coverage of the insurance period of the said vehicle of the complainant.  Accordingly, this issue tilts towards the complainant while repelling away from the O.P side.

Issues no.i & iii.

From the discussions as made above, the case of the complainant is undoubtedly maintainable and he is definitely entitled to the reliefs as claimed by him but ofcourse to a reasonable extent.

                                              ORDER

The case is decreed on contest against the O.P.  The O.P is thus directed to pay the insured value of the Policy bearing No.345105/31/2020/5529 of the vehicle bearing Regd. No.OD-05-AV-1499 to the complainant i.e. Rs.25,98,500/- alongwith interest thereon @ 12% per annum effective from 10.3.2021 till the total amount is quantified.     The O.P is further directed to pay a compensation of Rs.1,00,000/- to the complainant towards his mental agony and harassment alongwith a sum of Rs.30,000/- towards the cost of his litigation and this order is to be carried out within a period of 30 days from the date of receipt of copy of this order.

Order pronounced in the open court on the 18^th day of May,2023 under the seal and signature of this Commission.          

                                                                                                                            Sri Debasish Nayak

                                                                                                                                       President

 

                                                                                                                                      Sri Sibananda Mohanty

                                                                                                                                              Member