STATE CONSUMER DISPUTE REDRESSAL COMMISSION

BIHAR, PATNA

Appeal No. 230 of 2018

1. Branch Manager, LIC of India, Purnea Branch, NH-31, Jail Chowk, Purnea-854301

2. Divisional Manager, LIC of India, Bhagalpur, Divisional Office, Jeevan Prakash, Zero Mile, Bhagalpur- 813210

                                                                                                                                                             … Appellants

Versus

Sri Lal Bihari Sharan, Son of Late Kunj Bihari Sharan, Amla Tola, Madhubani, Purnea- 854301

                                                                                                                                      … Opposite Parties/Respondents

Counsel for the Appellant: Adv. Manish Kumar Singh

Counsel for the Respondent: Adv. Shushant Kumar Das & Adv. Shashi Bhushan Prasad Sinha

Before,

Hon’ble Mr. Justice Sanjay Kumar, President

Mr. Ram Prawesh Das, Member

Dated 10.05.2023

As per Sanjay Kumar, President.

O r d e r

1. Present appeal has been filed on behalf of appellant/Opposite party/ LIC of India for setting aside the order dated 16.01.2018 passed by the Ld. District Consumer Forum, Purnea in Complaint Case no. 23 of 2015 whereby and whereunder the complaint case has been allowed and appellant opposite party has been directed to pay the balance amount of  sum assured amount i.e Rs. 79,465/- within a period of two months with interest @9% p.a from the date of filing of complainant case till the date of payment and further to pay Rs. 10,000/- as compensation for physical and mental harassment and Rs. 5,000/- as cost of litigation.
2. Briefly stated the facts of the case is that complainant had taken a Jeevan Saral life insurance policy on 26.02.2004 for sum assured amount of Rs. 1,00,000/- and maturity period of policy was 11 years i.e 26.02.2015. Quarterly premium was Rs. 1,200/- and complainant paid the first premium of Rs. 1,200/- on 16.02.2004 and last premium was paid on 26.02.2014. Complainant in 11 years of term of insurance altogether paid Rs. 52,800/- in 44 quarterly premium  and on date of  maturity of the policy i.e 26.02.2015, LIC was to pay the sum assured amount of Rs. 1,00,000/- but instead paid a sum of Rs. 20,535/- (basic amount Rs. 15,796/-+bonus Rs. 4,766/-) as full and final maturity amount.
3. Aggrieved by non payment of sum assured amount of Rs. 1,00,000/- complainant filed a complaint case before the District Consumer Forum, Purnea giving rise to Complaint Case no. 23 of 2015.
4. Notices were issued to the opposite parties/LIC and they appeared and filed their Written Statement stating therein that Rs. 1,00,000/- was wrongly printed against the sum assured amount in the policy bond whereas, Rs. 1,00,000/- was to be printed against death benefit sum assured under main plan.
5. It is further stated that when this anomaly came to the knowledge of authorities in the year 2015 on maturity of policy corrective measures were taken and all policy holder were informed about this printing mistake. In life insurance business premium is charged according to the mortality insured lives. The mortality charge is higher for higher age group in Jeevan Saral Policy. Equal premium is charged for all ages of insured lives as such maturity value varies according to the age of the insured lives. The maturity value of higher age group is less than the lower age group.
6. The District Consumer Forum after hearing the parties and considering material available on record and on perusing the policy bond issued by the LIC held that sum assured amount of Rs. 1,00,000/- is payable after maturity of the insurance policy. The explanation given by the LIC that due to inadvertence the maturity sum assured amount has been shown as Rs. 1,00,000/- which was subsequently clarified by letters issued by the LIC in the year 2015 enclosed as annexure-3 series and accordingly the maturity sum assured was calculated as Rs. 20,535/- but same was not accepted by the District Consumer Forum as contention made were contrary to terms of contract and LIC could not produce any evidence that said discrepancy was conveyed to complainant and directed the LIC to pay the sum assured amount along with interest and compensation aggrieved by which LIC has preferred this appeal.
7. Heard the parties.
8. Policy bond of complainant has been enclosed in this memo of appeal in which date of commencement of policy is 26.02.2004 and date of maturity is 26.02.2015 and maturity sum assured is Rs. 1,00,000/-.
9. The contention of the counsel for the appellant that as soon as it came to the notice of authorities with respect to maturity sum assured amount wrongly typed in policy bond it took corrective measures and asked all the branches to correct discrepancy in the maturity sum assured. However, all the letters enclosed are of 2015 whereas the policy of the complainant had matured on 26.02.2015 and under no circumstances it could have been corrected. Even otherwise after payment of last premium as 44^th  premium by the complainant terms of contract of insurance can not be changed after 11 years.
10. In the policy bond of the complainant sum assured amount on maturity was recorded as Rs. 1,00,000/-. In the policy bond itself it is printed “In the event of the Life Assured Surviving the date of maturity a sum equal to maturity Sum Assured in force, after partial surrenders, if any, along with the corresponding loyalty addition, if any, shall be payable”.
11.  The insurance policy bond issued by the LIC is the proof of contract between the life assured and the insurer and both are bound by the terms and conditions of the policy and same cannot be altered unilaterally by LIC to the detriment of insured, more so when policy had already matured and became payable.
12. There is no merit in this appeal and is accordingly, dismissed.

(Ram Prawesh Das)                                                                           (Sanjay Kumar,J)

       Member                                                                                             President

Md. Fariduzzama