Haryana

Yamunanagar

CC/602/2009

Surjeet Kaur w/o Sh.Prem Singh, - Complainant(s)

Versus

Gagan Madan, - Opp.Party(s)

Ajaydeep Singh

06 May 2015

ORDER

BEFORE THE DISTRICT CONSUMER DISPUTES REDRESSAL FORUM, YAMUNA NAGAR

                                                                                                           Complaint No. 602  of 2009.

                                                                                                           Date of institution: 7.7.2009.

                                                                                                           Date of decision:  6.5.2015

Mrs. Surjeet Kaur wife of Sh. Prem Singh, resident of village  & Post Office Kharwan, Tehsil Jagadhri, District Yamuna Nagar.   

                                                                                                                                   …Complainant.

                                                Versus

1. Sh. Gagan Madan (Agent no. 0203).      
2. The Manager IFFCO TOKIO General Insurance Co. Ltd.
3. Richards Straus broking Insurance (P) Ltd.( Agent No. 0203).                                              
4. The Manager cum Director, IFFCO TOKIO General Insurance Co. Ltd. Plot No.2-B & C, 4^th, Floor, IFFCO Complex, Sector 28-A, Madhya Marg, Chandigarh.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                         …Opposite parties. 

                        Complaint under section 12 of

                        the Consumer Protection Act.

 

CORAM:          SH. A.K.SARDANA PRESIDENT,

                        SH. S.C.SHARMA, MEMBER.

 

Present: Sh. Ajay Deep Singh, Advocate, counsel for complainant.   

              Sh. Rajan Bhatia, Advocate, counsel for OP No.1.

              OP No. 2 ex-parte.

              OP No.3 given up.

              Sh. Karnesh Sharma, Advocate, counsel for OP No.4.

ORDER

                        Brief facts leading to the institution of the present complaint are that the complainant had insured one motor cycle make Hero Honda passion bearing registration No. HR02L- 5997 bearing Engine No. 12928, chassis no. 12114 vide cover note No. 36269651 valid from 19.3.2008 to 18.3.2009 through OP No.1 and unfortunately the said motorcycle met with an accident on 23.10.2008 and an FIR to this effect was also registered with P.S. Chhappar District Yamuna Nagar. The complainant intimated to the local office of OP Insurance Company whereby they deputed Sh. Ashok Aggarwal, Surveyor & Loss Assessor to assess the loss of the damaged vehicle and the surveyor surveyed the motorcycle at Khanna Automobile, Yamuna Nagar and assessed the loss as Rs. 24500/- and had also taken the signatures of relative of complainant on some blank papers and assured that the claim will be released very soon. Thereafter, the complainant visited the office of OP No.1 several times and requested to release the claim amount of Rs. 24500/- who assured that the said amount will be released shortly. The complainant was shocked and surprised when she received one notice dated 14.3.2008 wherein it was mentioned that her claim has been rejected on the ground that the insured vehicle was being driven by someone else instead of complainant at the time of accident. The complainant again requested for release of the aforesaid claim amount in her favour but all in vain and finding no alternative the complainant issued a legal notice dated 9.4.2009 for releasing the said claim but the said legal notice was not received by OPs. The act and conduct of the OPs amounts to unfair trade practice and deficiency in service on their part.  In the end, she has prayed for directing the OPs to pay a sum of Rs. 24,500/- immediately alongwith interest @18% per annum from the date of accident till its realization and also to pay compensation as well as litigation expenses.

2.                     Upon notice, OPs No.1 & 4 appeared through their counsel and filed written statement separately whereas OP No.2 was proceeded against ex-parte vide order dated 22.10.2009 and OP No.3 was given up vide order dated 21.8.2014. OP No.1 has urged in the written statement that he is neither an agent of OP No.2 Company nor the complainant ever got her alleged vehicle insured through him. The complainant never intimated about any alleged accident to the answering OP nor there was any occasion for her to do so as the answering Op is not at all connected with the OP No.2 company, as alleged and prayed for dismissal of complaint being false and frivolous qua the answering OP.   

3.                     OP No.4 urged in the written statement that the answering OP had issued an insurance policy in the name of Surjeet Kaur wife of Prem Singh resident of village Kharwan, Tehsil Jagadhri, District Yamuna Nagar vide insurance policy No. 38566398 and the same was effective from 19.3.2008 to 18.3.2009 and on receiving the intimation regarding accident of motorcycle in question, the answering OP immediately registered the claim and deputed Mr. Ashok Aggarwal, Surveyor & Loss Assessor, an independent and technical person for the final survey report of motorcycle in question who assessed the loss of Rs. 7900/-. The surveyor has given a note in his report that above said vehicle bearing registration No. HR-02L-5997 has been purchased by Mr. Baljeet Singh from Smt. Surjeet Kaur and the same statement has been given in writing by Mr. Baljit Singh. As clear, from the copy of statement of Baljeet Singh son of Gurnam Singh ( Annexure R4/5), the complainant had no insurable interest since she had already sold the vehicle in question to Sh. Baljit Singh in the month of December 2007 and the accident had taken place on 21.10.2008. Hence, claim of the complainant was not paid and the same was closed as “No Claim”. The claim was repudiated and the complainant was informed about the fate of her claim vide registered AD letter of the OP dated 14.3.2008 and the alleged legal notice dated 9.4.2009 has no legal value. The present complaint has been filed by the complainant with malafide intention to fulfil her evil desire and to waste the precious time of this learned Forum. Hence, there is no deficiency in service on the part of answering OP and prayed for dismissal of complaint with costs.

4.                     To prove his case, counsel for the complainant has tendered into evidence affidavit of complainant as Annexure CX and documents as Annexures C-1 to C-4 and closed evidence on behalf of complainant. On the other hand, counsel for OP No.4 has tendered affidavit of Pallavi Roy as Annexure RX and Shri Ashok Aggarwal, Surveyor & Loss Assessor as Annexure RY and documents as Annexures R4/1 to R4/7 and closed the evidence on behalf of OP No.4 whereas evidence of OP No.1 was closed by court order vide order dated 21.1.2015.

5.                            We have heard learned counsel for both the parties and have gone through the pleadings as well as documents placed on file. Learned counsel for the complainant argued that the OP insurance company has wrongly rejected her claim on the ground that the insured vehicle was being driven by somebody else instead of complainant at the time of accident.

6.                     On the other hand, counsel for OP No.4 argued that the complainant had sold her motorcycle to Sh. Baljit Singh in the month of December 2007 and the accident took place on 20.10.2008 i.e. after a period of 10 months  and the complainant has no insurable interest as she has already sold the vehicle to Sh. Baljeet Singh. Moreover, Sh. Baljit Singh has given in writing to the OP No. 4 that he has purchased motorcycle bearing registration No. HR-02L-5997 in December 2007 from Surjeet Kaur and had paid Rs. 24,000/- to her. Aforesaid motorcycle met with an accident on 20.10.2008 and the surveyor had surveyed the vehicle at Khanna Automobiles. Learned counsel for the OP No.4 further argued that the complainant has no insurable interest with the answering OP and relied upon the case law titled as Dharambir Vs. New India Insurance Co. Ltd. IV (2012) CPJ page 639 (NC) wherein it has been held “that Claim repudiated on ground that complainant had no insurable interest on the date of loss, as he has already sold vehicle to DP. Alleged deficiency in service-District Forum allowed complaint-State Commission allowed appeal- Hence revision-FIR filed before police was filed by DS as the owner of vehicle and not by complainant-Documents establish that complainant had sold vehicle to DP before it was stolen. Revision petition without substance-repudiation justified”.

                        In view of the facts narrated above, we are of the confirmed view that the OP No.4 Insurance Company has rightly repudiated the claim of the complainant on the ground that the complainant was not having any insurable interest at the time of accident as the complainant had already sold her vehicle to one Sh. Baljit Singh son of Sh. Gurnam Singh in the year of 2007 and said Baljit Singh had also intimated to OP No.4 vide application dated 30.12.2008 ( Annexure R4/5) mentioning therein that he had purchased vehicle No. HR-02L 5997 in December 2007 from Surjeet Kaur and paid Rs. 24,000/- to her. His vehicle met with an accident on 20.10.2008 and the same was surveyed by your surveyor at Khanna Automobiles and further requested for disbursing the claim in his favour of said damaged vehicle No. HR02L-5997.  Hence, the authority titled Dharmabir vs. New India Insurance Co. ltd. (supra) tendered by OP No.4 is fully applicable in the present case and as such there is no deficiency in service on the part of OPs. Therefore, we find no merit in the present complaint and the same is hereby dismissed with no order as to costs. Copies of this order be sent to the parties concerned free of costs as per rules. File be consigned to the record room after due compliance.

Announced:6.5.2015

                                                                                          (A.K.SARDANA)

                                                                                           PRESIDENT

 

                                                                                          (S.C.SHARMA)

                                                                                           MEMBER