Petitioner was opposite party before the District Forum.

Respondent/complainant insured his innova car with the OP insurance company for the period from 21.3.2008 to 20.3.2009.  The said car met with an accident on 22.10.2008 at Thanesar.  FIR was lodged with the police. Petitioner deputed a surveyor, who after inspecting the vehicle, found that there was total loss to the vehicle. Petitioner agreed to pay the assessed amount of Rs.5,70,000/-, which was the outstanding loan amount towards the vehicle, to the concerned bank.  Later on, petitioner agreed to pay Rs.3,25,000/- to the Complainant to settle the claim on cash loss basis.  According to the complainant, nothing was done, aggrieved by which, Complainant sent a legal notice to the petitioner and thereafter filed a complaint before the District Forum.

Before the District Forum, petitioner had taken the stand that the respondent had agreed to accept Rs.3,25,000/- on cash loss basis and they had sent a cheque in the sum of Rs.3,25,000/- along with forwarding letter to the respondent, which was returned with postal remarks “house locked”.  District Forum rejected the defence taken by the petitioner and directed the petitioner to pay Rs.6,77,231/- by way of compensation along with interest at the rate of 8% and costs of Rs.5,000/-. District Forum further directed that if the car cannot be transferred in view of the pending criminal case, the same could be retained by the Complainant for which Rs.8,500/- had already been deducted from the admissible amount of compensation.

Aggrieved by this, petitioner filed appeal before the State Commission.  State Commission has dismissed the appeal by the impugned order.  State Commission, in its order, recorded the following finding :

“After hearing the learned counsel for the parties and perusal of the record, we have come to the conclusion that the surveyor under the head summary of assessment assessed the net payable amount to the appellant/complainant to the tune of Rs.5,41,322.85 paise as there was note on page No.5 of the report of the surveyor Annexure R/1 that the amount of damages of engine, gear box, ECM and censors will be added after dismantling the vehicle but he assessed the cost of dismantling approximately to a sum of Rs.35,000/-.  Therefore, the total assessed amount according to the surveyor is Rs.5,76,322.85 paise.  While assessing the amount, the surveyor assessed the value of the body shell component to the tune of Rs.2,32,000/-  Though the surveyor gave a note under column (c) that the “body shell cost is Rs.3,03,474/- plus VAT whereas the local repairer has taken only Rs.2,32,000/-.  Keeping in view this remark of the surveyor, the District Forum was of the opinion that value of the body shell component should be Rs.3,03,474/- as per the market value and after additing VAT @ 12.5% the total value of the body shell comes out to be Rs.3,41,408.25 paise.  Moreover, the learned District Forum has also bserved that as the amount is above Rs.1,000/- so the policy clause would not be applicable and the amount of Rs.1,000/- as deducted by the surveyor cannot be allowed and the learned District Forum after deducting the salvage value i.e. Rs.8500/- awarded the amount of compensation of Rs.6,77,231/-.” 

We agree with the view taken by the State Commission.  The surveyor has assessed the loss on total loss basis at Rs.5,70,000/- and the petitioner had agreed to pay the assessed loss to the concerned bank, which had financed the vehicle.  Fora below have awarded the amount as per the loss assessed by the petitioner’s own surveyor.  Dismissed.

Counsel for the petitioner at this stage states that later on petitioner had handed over a cheques for a sum of Rs.3,25,000/- to the respondent before the District Forum.  If that be so, petitioner would be entitled to deduct the aforesaid amount of Rs.3,25,000/- while making payment of the awarded amount.