Orissa

Kendujhar

CC/33/2017

Maheswar Panda - Complainant(s)

Versus

M/S Life Insurance corporation - Opp.Party(s)

J. Dash& associate

11 Apr 2018

ORDER

    IN THE COURT OF THE PRESIDENT DISTRICT CONSUMER DISPUTES REDRESSAL FORUM,

KEONJHAR

                                                        CONSUMER COMPLAINT CASE NO. 33 OF 2017

Maheswar Panda, aged about 52 years

Son of late Abhimanyu Panda, At-Kamargoda

P.o-Keonjhargarh, P.s-Town

 Dist-Keonjhar,758002……………………………………...……………………………………………………..… Complainant

                     Versus

M/S Life Insurance corporation Ltd.

Represented by its Branch Manager,

Keonjhar Branch, At-Mandua, Po—Keonjhargarh , P.s-Town,

Dist-Keonjhar(Odisha) …………………………………………………………………………………………………..Opp.Parties

  Present:

 

   Smt. B.Giri President (I/C)

   Sri Bharat Bhusan Das (M)

   Advocate for complainant-   Miss Jagatjita Das & associate.

   Advocate for    Op       -      Tapas kumar  Mohapatra & associate.

 

  Date of hearing  - 15.01.2018                                                                          Date of Order- 11 .04.2018

 

1. B.Giri  President (I/C)- Brief facts of the case is that the complainant is a policy holder of Op bearing policy No-585962264 dt 04.06.05 with sum assured of Rs 4,00,000/- and date of maturity is 4.3.17 to be paid quarterly @ Rs 9135.00 and accordingly with late fee charges paid Rs 57252 for 9/05 to 12/06 and Rs 9135/- for 3/07 and Rs 9134/- for 08/08 and due to financial paucity could not able to pay the further installments and repeated request the op to  refund the payment dues only and finally sent one legal notice to op. In this regard, answering in  which the op on 4.8.17 refused to pay the deposited amount to the complainant causing mental agony and financial loss to the complainant and hence this case for a direction to op (LIC company) to pay the amount of Rs  80,000/- paid towards premium charges and Rs 10,000/- for mental agony and Rs 5000/-towards cost of litigation.

 

2. After service of notice Op appeared through his engaged counsel and challenged that the present proceeding is not maintainable as there is no cause of action to initiate this complainant against op at the belated stage. The complainant petition is barred by limitation as the disputes related to the year 2007 and further stated that the complainant not paid the premium as per condition of policy and stopped the payment for 10 years and after 10 years sent a legal notice which was duly replied and as the complainant failed to pay the premium since 2007 and not paid for continuously at least 3 years. He is not legally entitled to claim for refund of his premium amount and hence the case be dismissed. Both the parties placed their written argument separately. The question remains whether the complainant is entitled to get refund his deposit amount or not.

 

3. In this connection we perused the materials available on record. It is not disputed that complainant could not able to pay the premium till agreed period and only paid for  9/05 to 12/06 with late fine and for 2 other quarters. But the learned advocate for the complainant in her argument stated that what so ever may be the facts and reason from the view of several judicial pronunciations the case may be treated as exceptional and amount already paid to the insurance company be refunded back to the policy holder but failed to file any citation in this regard.

 

4. On the other hand id. Advocate for the op in his written argument stated that deposit of premium at least 3 year is mandatory condition of the policy and in the present case complainant violated the policy condition and hence not entitled for any refund in this regard & relied upon the policy condition laid down in point No-4  “Non- forfeiture regulation”. On perusal of policy condition laid down in the Bond given to complainant in point No4 it is clearly mentioned. If after at least three full years premiums have been paid in respect of this policy, any subsequent premium be not duly paid of this policy shall not be wholly void, but sum assured by it shall be reduced and in point No5 of insurance Bond it is also clearly mentioned in case the premium shall not be duly paid policy will be void and in that event amount paid will be forfeited and policy will be lapsed.

 

5. In the present case complainant paid for 1 and ½ year and not completed minimum period i.e       3 years continuously. Hence in our opinion complainant violated the policy conditions and hence claim of premium deposit amount is   unjustified filed and hence complainant is not entitled to claim for refund of his deposited premium amount.

 

6. This case is accordingly disposed of But without cost.

 

 

     Pronounced, 11^th Apr  2018

   I agree                                                                                                                                            I agree

 

 

 Sri B. B. Das                                                                                                                                Smt B. Giri                                      

Member (m)                                                                                                                              President (I/C)

DCDRF,Keonjhar                                                                                                                       DCDRF,Keonjhar                                 

                                                         Dictated & Corrected by

 

        (Smt B. Giri )

                                                                         (President) I/C

                                                                      DCDRF, Keonjhar