Haryana

Ambala

CC/84/2013

MAN MOHAN - Complainant(s)

Versus

HDFC BANK LTD. - Opp.Party(s)

V.K. SOBTI

22 Aug 2017

ORDER

BEFORE THE PRESIDENT DISTRICT CONSUMER DISPUTES REDRESSAL FORUM, AMBALA.

                                                          Complaint No.84/13.

                                                          Date of Instt.12.04.2013.

                                                          Date of Decision: 22.08.2017.

1.Man Mohan, aged 43 years,

2.Chander Shekhar, aged 38 years,

Both sons of late Sh.Jagdish Lal Sharma,

3.Lalita Sharma aged 62 years widow of late Sh.Jagdish Lal Sharma,

All residents of village Adhoi Tehsil Barara District Ambala.

 

                                                                    Complainant.

                             Vs.

 

HDFC Bank, Railway Road, Barara Distict Ambala.

 

          Opposite party.

 

                   Complaint U/s 12 of CP Act, 1986.

 

Before:                 SH. D.N. ARORA, PRESIDENT

                             SH. PUSHPENDER KUMAR, MEMBER         

                             MS. ANAMIKA GUPTA, MEMBER                 

 

Argued By:           Sh.V.K.Sobti, counsel for the complainant.

                             Sh.Ashok Goel, Adv. for OP.

 

ORDER:

 

                   The complainant has filed this complaint against OP with the averments that Jagdish Lal Sharma, father of complainant Nos.1 & 2 was holding a joint account No.21741000001196 with customer ID No.39077925 with his wife (complainant No.3) in OP bank and the complainant No.2 was appointed as nominee. The OP-bank had offered Sh.Jagdish Lal Sharma Platinum Card No.4363030103035747 with undertaking and promise that life of card holder stood insured to the extent of Rs.5 lac in case of death and the OP-bank had charged Rs.561/- as premium charges. Unfortunately, said Jagdish Lal Sharma met with an accident and expired on 22.01.2013 and regarding this FIR was also lodged. Thereafter, the complainants visited the OP and submitted all the necessary documents for insurance claim but it refused to do so.  The complainants also not served legal notice upon the OP but to no avail. The act and conduct of the Op-bank clearly amounts to deficiency in service.  In evidence, the complainant has tendered affidavit Annexure CX and documents Annexure C1 to Annexure C10.

2.                          On notice OP appeared and filed its reply stating therein that the card holder was to comply with the terms, conditions, rules and regulations of the bank regarding benefits to be availed under platinum debit card but the complainants have never submitted any claim except a registered legal notice dated 26.02.2013 which was duly replied. As per policy terms and conditions for claims under Personal Accident Death covered to be accepted and processed the card holder should have carried out at least 1 purchase transaction at a merchant location by using the debit card within three months prior to date of the event and said condition was duly informed to the customer while opening the account. The card holder had failed to comply with the terms and conditions of his entitlement for the insurance cover and even the complainants have never given any intimation whatsoever about death and lodging of FIR. The claim has been rightly rejected. Other averments made in the complaint have been denied and prayer for dismissal of the complaint has been made. No evidence was led by the Op despite availing number of opportunities; hence, the same was closed on 30.07.2015 by the order of the Forum.

3.                           Arguments advanced by learned counsel for the have been heard and the case file has been perused.

4.                          It is admitted fact that the deceased Jagdish Lal Sharma was a customer of OP-bank since 2011 as per statement of account Annexure R3. It is also not disputed that the bank had issued platinum debit card bearing No.4363030103035747. The counsel for the OP has also placed on record usage guide of the platinum debit card. The relevant term is as under:

                             “You are entitled to a Base Personal Accident Death cover by Air/Road/Rail-Sum assured Rs.5 lac. Additionally, you are also eligible for an Accelerated personal Accidental Death Cover upto a maximum of Rs. 5 lac. Under the Accelerated benefit, for every Rs.1 spent on purchases through the Platinum Debit Card in the last 12 months, from the date of event, your sum insured increases by Five Times the amount spent. The Accelerated benefit is subject to minimum spends of Rs.20,000/- in the last 12 months at merchant locations.

 

                             Please note that for any claims under the Personal Accident Insurance to be accepted and processed, the cardholder should have carried out at least 1 purchase transaction using the Debit Card within 3 months prior to the event date.”

5.                          In the present the OP-bank had charged Rs.561/- on 14.01.2013 on account of annual fee of the above said card which is reflected from the statement of account of the deceased.   However, OP or insured company did not charge any premium for the insurance from the deceased. It is also proved on the case file that the card holder Jagdish Lal Sharma had died on 22.01.2013 in a road side accident took place on 21.01.2013 and FIR under Sections 279/304-A IPC Annexure C4 was also registered which shows that the card holder died before completing the mandatory period of 3 months of the usage of the said debit card, as mentioned above on which the OP-bank has heavily relied upon. At the time of arguments the complainant also placed on record copy of PMR issued by PGI, Chandigarh because complainant was referred to PGI Chandigarh for treatment and lateron he died in said hospital on 22.01.2013 at 6.23 A.M.  In the post mortem report the cause of death has been mentioned as Roadside accident and Head Injuries. Copy of death certificate Annexure C1 was also issued by the Chandigarh Administration wherein the place of death has also shown as PGI, Chandigarh.  The documents such as PMR, copy of FIR and death certificate and affidavit of complainant No.2 which proved that Jagdish Lal Sharma had died on 22.01.2013 due to road side accident took place on 21.01.2013. This fact has remained unrebutted as the OP has failed to produce any cogent and reliable evidence on the case file to counter these documents.

6.                          Learned counsel for the complainant has argued that the deceased had died before completing the period of three months for usage of said debit card for atleast one purchase transaction as the card holder had died on 22.01.2013 within a period of eight days and the annual fee of the said card was charged on 14.01.2013 and the period of three months would started from 14.01.2013 i.e. charging of annual fee/premium for debit card.  The OP has wrongly withhold the genuine claim of the complainant on the ground that the card holder/deceased had violated the terms and conditions by not using the debit card for one time in three months but the same was beyond his control and he died in a road side accident before expiry of three months which cannot be said as violation of the terms and conditions. Learned counsel for the complainant has further argued that in the terms and conditions there is not mentioned that if the card holder died before expiry of three months then what would be the fate of the insurance and further argued that if terms and conditions are strictly construed in case of ambiguity, then the construction has to be made in favour of the insured. In support of his arguments he has placed reliance of case law titled as M/s B.HS Industries Vs. Export Credit Guarantee Corp. & Anr.  2015 (3) Law Herald (SC) 2374.

7.                On the other hand learned counsel for the OP has argued that the as per terms and conditions of the user guide it is clear that the for insurance to be accepted and processed if card holder has carried out atleast one purchased transaction using the debit card within three months prior to the even date. It was mandatory for the card holder to use the said platinum card atleast once within a period of three months prior to event date but there is nothing on the file to show that the card holder/deceased had ever carried out any purchase transaction by using the said debit card for once within a period of three months prior to accident in which the card holder had died for which the OP had offered insurance. When the policy in question was not enforced on account of default on the part of card holder then how the complainants can ask for the claim on account of death of the card holder who died in an accident.

8.                We have fully convinced with the arguments advanced by learned counsel for the OP as there is nothing on the file to show that the card holder had ever made atleast one purchase transaction by using the debit card in question, therefore, it can be easily presumed that the card holder was not covered under the insurance scheme offered by the OP-bank. The case law relied upon by learned counsel for the complainant titled as M/s B.HS Industries Vs. Export Credit Guarantee Corp. & Anr.   (supra) is not helpful to the case of the complainant and is being distinguished.   

9.                          Keeping in view the facts and circumstances of the case we are of the considered opinion that the complainants are not entitled for any relief as prayed for. Accordingly, we dismiss the present complaint leaving the parties to bear their own costs Copy of this order be supplied to the parties free of costs. File be consigned to record room after due compliance.

Announced in the open court:

Dated: 22.08.2017                                                (D.N.Arora),

                                                                   President,

                                                                   Distt. Consumer Disputes

                                                                   Redressal Forum,Ambala.

 

(Pushpender Kumar)                                                                                   Member

                                                                   (Anamika Gupta),

                                                                     Member