DISTRICT CONSUMER DISPUTES REDRESSAL FORUM, BATHINDA

CC.No.18 of 01-01-2014

Decided on 11-04-2014

Balwinder Singh aged about 65 years S/o Hari Singh R/o Village Lehra Sondha, P.O. Lehra Dhurkot, District Bathinda.

........Complainant

Versus

1.DLF Premerica Life Insurance Company Limited, 4th Floor, Building No.9, Tower-B, City DLF City, Phase-III, Gurgaon-122002 (Haryana), through its M.D/Chairman.

2.DLF Premerica Life Insurance Company Limited, Feroze Gandhi Market, Ludhiana, through its Manager/Authorized Person.

3.ICICI Prudential Life Insurance Company Limited, Opp. Dr.Mohan Lal Garg, The Mall, Bathinda, through its Manager.

.......Opposite parties

Complaint under Section 12 of the Consumer Protection Act, 1986.

QUORUM

Smt.Vikramjit Kaur Soni, President.

Smt.Sukhwinder Kaur, Member.

Sh.Jarnail Singh, Member.

Present:-

For the Complainant: Sh.A.S Aulakh, counsel for the complainant.

For Opposite parties: Sh.N.K Batta, counsel for the opposite party Nos.1 and 2.

Sh.Ashok Bharti, counsel for opposite party No.3.

ORDER

VIKRAMJIT KAUR SONI, PRESIDENT:-

1. This complaint has been filed by the complainant under section 12 of the Consumer Protection Act, 1986 as amended upto date (Here-in-after referred to as an 'Act'). The brief facts of the complaint are that the complainant purchased three life insurance policies of ICICI Prudential Life insurance Company Limited and the opposite party No.3 induced him to purchase the life insurance policy of DLF Premerica Life Insurance Company, in which he was required to deposit the amount with the opposite party Nos.1 and 2 annually for a period of 20 years, with the assurance to provide the handsome outputs on the said deposits including interest, bonus, death help facility etc. and further assured him that he would be entitled to withdraw the total amount deposited by him with the opposite party Nos.1 and 2 at any stage, before the expiry of the maturity period of 20 years, alongwith upto date interest and other benefits, without any deductions. On the assurance of the opposite party No.3 the complainant purchased the insurance policy bearing No.000088926 from the opposite party Nos.1 and 2 and deposited the first premium of Rs.42,490/- with them on dated 14.10.2011. In the month of September, 2012 the complainant requested the opposite party No.3 to refund the total amount deposited by him alongwith upto date interest and other benefits as assured by the representative of the opposite parties at the time of selling of the abovesaid policy, but the opposite parties did not refund him any amount till date and have been putting off the matter on one or the other pretext. The complainant has got issued a legal notice dated 27.9.2013 to the opposite parties. The complainant further alleged that the opposite parties have admitted the amount of Rs.42,490/- deposited by him with them. Hence the present complaint filed by the complainant to seek the directions of this Forum to the opposite parties to refund the amount of Rs.42,490/- alongwith upto date interest and other benefits on the said amount besides cost and compensation.

2. The opposite party Nos.1 and 2 after appearing before this Forum have filed their joint written statement and pleaded that the DHLF (Earlier known as DLF) Premerica Life Insurance Company Limited is a registered company under Companies Act, 1956, having its Office at 4th Floor, Building No.9, Tower-B, Cyber City, Phase III, Gugaon, is engaged in the life insurance business duly approved as per the Government of India through the insurance regulator IRDA. The complainant being an educated person must have gone through the terms and conditions of the application form and must be aware of the terms and conditions of the abovesaid policy at the time of filling of the application form as the same has been filled and signed by him. There is a Free Look Period option in which the policyholder has the right to review the policy terms and conditions and cancel the policy within a period of 15 days from the date of receipt of the policy documents if he/she is not satisfied with its terms and conditions, but the complainant did not avail the said option. The life assured Alamjit Singh and proposer Balwinder Singh after completely understanding the terms and conditions of the insurance product 'DLF Premerica Dhan Suraksha Plan' had voluntarily filled up the proposal form bearing No.AF000487194, signed it on dated 19.9.2011. In the proposal form, the life assured & proposer had given all the relevant details and information in the prescribed form, for the sum assured amounting to Rs.3,73,000/- and an annual premium amounting to Rs.42,500/- was proposed to be paid for the period of 20 years. The complainant submitted various documents alongwith the application form, which itself shows that he after duly understanding the terms and conditions, opted for the abovesaid policy. After receiving the initial premium, the opposite party Nos.1 and 2 issued the policy bearing No.000088926 with the commencement date of 14.10.2011 and sent the policy documents, schedule, terms and conditions thereto alongwith a welcome letter to the complainant on dated 18.10.2011 through Speed Post having AWB No.ED260310950IN that were duly delivered to his address. In the welcome letter the option of Free Look Period has been given to the complainant. On 25.7.2012, the opposite parties received a complaint regarding malpractices or unfair trade business practices from the complainant that has been duly replied by them on dated 21.8.2012 informing him that the abovesaid policy was issued to him on the basis of KYC documents duly filled and signed by him. On 3.9.2012, the opposite parties received another complaint from the complainant requesting for the cancellation of the abovesaid policy on the ground that it has been sold by fraudulent means, which has been replied by the opposite parties on dated 19.9.2012.

3. During the pendency of this complaint the opposite party No.3 instead of filing of the written statement moved an application for the dismissal of the complaint against it on the ground that ICICI Prudential Life Insurance Company is a separate entity legally as well as otherwise and has nothing to do with the business conducted by other institutions or agents including the DLF Premerica Life Insurance Company. Both the companies have absolutely no link and are not involved in any business with each other. The complainant has purchased the abovesaid policy from the opposite party Nos.1 and 2, not from the opposite party No.3 i.e. ICICI Prudential Life Insurance Company. Thus no cause of action arose against the opposite party No.3 as no policy has been purchased by the complainant from it, as such he has not availed any services from the opposite party No.3.

The complainant has filed the reply to the abovesaid application and pleaded that the opposite party No.3 has filed the said application in order to avoid its liability as the complainant has purchased the abovesaid policy from the opposite party Nos.1 and 2 at the instance and allurement of the opposite party No.3. The opposite party No.3 called the agent/adviser of the opposite party Nos.1 and 2 from Ludhiana and he obtained the signatures of the complainant on various blank papers including the proposal form in the office of the opposite party No.3..

4. Arguments advanced by the parties heard at length.

5. The complainant in his complaint and affidavit has specifically mentioned that he has purchased one 'ULIP' policy from DLF Premerica Life Insurance Company Limited i.e. DLF Premerica Dhan Suraksha Plan. In Parawise reply the opposite party Nos.1 and 2 specifically denied that it was ever represented to the complainant by the opposite party No.3. Moreover the documents placed on file shows that DLF Life Insurance Company Proposal Form does not contain even a single word that the complainant was ever represented by the opposite party No.3 to purchase the abovesaid policy.

6. Thus from the documents placed on file by the complainant it is clear that the policy in question purchased by the complainant has been issued by the opposite party Nos.1 and 2 and the opposite party No.3 has no concern with it. The opposite party Nos.1 and 2 are entirely separate entity from the opposite party No.3. Both the companies i.e. DLF (Now DHLF) Premerica Life Insurance Company Limited and ICICI Prudential Life Insurance Company Limited are not related to each other.

7. A bare perusal of title of the complaint shows that the opposite party No.1 is having its office at Gurgaon and opposite party No.2 at Ludhiana and just to create the territorial jurisdiction at Bathinda, the opposite party No.3 has been impleaded as party by the complainant.

8. Therefore in view of what has been discussed above the application moved by the opposite party No.3 is allowed and the Superintendent of this Forum is directed to return the main complaint/original registry alongwith all the documents to the complainant against the valid receipt. The complainant is at liberty to file the complaint before the Forum having appropriate jurisdiction.

9. A copy of this order be sent to the parties concerned free of cost and file be consigned to the record room.

Pronounced in open Forum:-

11-04-2014

(Vikramjit Kaur Soni)

President

(Sukhwinder Kaur)

Member

(Jarnail Singh)

Member