PRESENT:      Sh.S.P.S.Dhindsa, Proxy Adv. for complainant.

Sh.Rajesh Verma, Adv. for OP.

                              ---

PER LAKSHMAN SHARMA, PRESIDENT

          Sh.Santokh Singh  has filed this complaint under section 12 of the Consumer Protection Act, 1986 praying therein that OP be directed  to release the claim of Rs.71,554/-. The complainant has further prayed that  OP be also directed to pay Rs.25000/- as compensation for mental agony and harassment besides costs of litigation

2.        In brief, the case of the complainant is that he got insured his Jeep Tempo Trex Cruser bearing registration No.PB-65-F-0475 with OP for assured sum of Rs.4,75,000/- vide insurance cover note No.125024 as “Private Vehicle”. The said policy was valid from 05.04.2007 to 03.04.2008. According to the complainant, the said vehicle (which was being driven by him) met with an accident on 13.12.2007 due to bursting of rear tyre. The vehicle was badly damaged and a DDR No.45 dated 04.01.2008 (Annexure C-2) was registered with the police station to this effect. On the instructions of the investigator, he got his vehicle repaired from Bhambra Motors, Mohali by spending Rs.71,554/-. Thereafter, the complainant submitted his claim along with the relevant documents with OP. According to the complainant, instead of releasing the claim of Rs.71,554/- , OP repudiated the claim vide letter dated 30.07.2007 (Annexure C-4) on the ground that the complainant was not having the route permit on the date of accident. Rejection of the claim, according to the complainant amounts to deficiency in service. In these circumstances, the present complaint was filed seeking the reliefs mentioned above.

3.        In the reply filed by the OP, the factum of insurance of the vehicle in question for assured sum of Rs.4,75,000/- vide insurance cover note No.125024 as “Private Vehicle” for the period from 05.04.2007 to 03.04.2008 has been admitted.  It has been pleaded that the claim of the complainant was rightly repudiated on the ground that on the date of accident i.e. 13.12.2007, the route permit was not valid whereas the route permit was valid for the period from 24.03.08 to 23.03.2013. It has further been pleaded that the Insurance Ombudsman, Chandigarh  vide its order dated 10.09.2008 also observed that the claim of the complainant was rightly dismissed by OP.  In these circumstances, according to OP, there is no deficiency in service on its part and the complaint deserves dismissal.

4.        We have heard the learned counsel for the parties and have gone through the entire record including documents, annexures, affidavits etc. 

5.        Annexure C-1/A is the certificate of registration of the vehicle in question issued by the District Transport Officer, SAS Nagar, Mohali. From the bare perusal of the same, it is apparent that the motor vehicle in question is a maxi cab and has sitting capacity of 12 persons including the driver. The term maxi cab has been defined in sub section 22 of Section 2 of the Motor Vehicles Act which reads as under:-

“(22) "Maxicab" means any motor vehicle constructed or adapted to carry more than six passengers, but not more than twelve passengers, excluding the driver, for hire or reward;”

6         The term “Private Service Vehicle” has been defined in sub section 33 of Section 2 of the Motor Vehicles Act which reads as under:-

“(33) "Private Service Vehicle" means a motor vehicle constructed or adapted to carry more than six persons excluding the driver and ordinarily used by or on behalf of the owner of such vehicle for the purpose of carrying persons for, or in connection with, his trade or business otherwise than for hire or reward but does not include a motor vehicle used for public purposes;”

7.        The term “Transport Vehicle” has been defined in sub section 47 of Section 2 of the Motor Vehicles Act which reads as under:-

“(47) "Transport Vehicle" means a public service vehicle, a goods carriage, an educational institution bus or a private service vehicle;”.

8.        Section 66 of the Motor Vehicles Act reads as under:-

“NECESSITY FOR PERMITS.

66. Necessity for permits. (1) No owner of a motor vehicle shall use or permit the use of the vehicle as a transport vehicle in any public place whether or not such vehicle is actually carrying any passengers or goods save in accordance with the conditions of a permit granted or countersigned by a Regional or State Transport Authority or any prescribed authority authorising him the use of the vehicle in that place in the manner in which the vehicle is being used:

Provided that a stage carriage permit shall, subject to any conditions that may be specified in the permit, authorize the use of the vehicle as a contract carriage:

Provided further that a stage carriage permit may, subject to any conditions that may be specified in the permit, authorise the use of the vehicle as a goods carriage either when carrying passengers or not:

Provided also that a goods carriage permit shall, subject to any conditions that may be specified in the permit, authorise the use of the vehicle for the carriage of goods for or in connection with a trade or business carried on by him.

(2) The holder of a goods carriage permit may use the vehicle, for the drawing of any public or semi- trailer not owned by him, subject to such conditions as may be prescribed.

(3) The provisions of sub-section (1) shall not apply—

(a) to any transport vehicle owned by the Central Government or a State Government and used for Government purposes unconnected with any commercial enterprise;

(b) to any transport vehicle owned by a local authority or by a person acting under contract with a local authority and used solely for road cleansing, road watering or conservancy purposes;

(c) to any transport vehicle used solely for police, fire brigade or ambulance purposes;

(d) to any transport vehicle used solely for the conveyance of corpses and the mourners accompanying the corpses;

(e) to any transport vehicle used for towing a disabled vehicle or for removing goods from a disabled vehicle to a place of safety;

(f) to any transport vehicle used for any other public purpose as may be prescribed by the State Government in this behalf;

(g) to any transport vehicle used by a person who manufactures or deals in motor vehicles or builds bodies for attachment to chassis, solely for such purposes and in accordance with such conditions as the Central Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, specify in this behalf;

(h) to any transport vehicle owned by, and used solely for the purposes of, any educational institution which is recognised by the Central or State Government or whose managing committee is a society registered under the Societies Registration Act, 1860 (21 of 1860.) or under any law corresponding to that Act in force in any part of India;

(i) to any goods vehicle, the gross vehicle weight of which does not exceed 3,000 kilograms;

(j) subject to such conditions as the Central Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, specify, to any transport vehicle purchased in one State and proceeding to a place, situated in that State or in any other State, without carrying any passenger or goods;

(k) to any transport vehicle which has been temporarily registered under section 43 while proceeding empty to any place for the purpose of registration of the vehicle;

(l) to any transport vehicle used for such purposes (other than plying for hire or reward) as the Central Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, specify;

(m) to any transport vehicle which, owing to flood, earthquake or any other natural calamity, obstruction on road, or unforeseen circumstances is required to be diverted through any other route, whether within or outside the State, with a view to enabling it to reach its destination;

(n) to any transport vehicle used for such purposes as the Central or State Government may, by order, specify;

(o) to any transport vehicle which is subject to a hire- purchase, lease or hypothecation agreement and which owing to the default of the owner has been taken possession of by or on behalf of, the person with whom the owner has entered into such agreement, to enable such motor vehicle to reach its destination; or

(p) to any transport vehicle while proceeding empty to any place for purpose of repair.

(4) Subject to the provisions of sub-section (3), sub-section (1) shall if the State Government by rule made under section 96 so prescribes, apply to any motor vehicle adapted to carry more than nine
persons excluding the driver”.

9.        From the bare perusal of the above said sections of the Motor Vehicles Act, it is apparent that no owner of the vehicle can use or permit the use of such vehicle as a transport vehicle at any public place except in accordance with the terms and conditions of the permit granted by the competent authority. In the present case, even if the vehicle  was being used as a ‘Private Service Vehicle’, it needed permit for plying on public place. Admittedly, the complainant was not having any valid permit for use of the said vehicle as Transport Vehicle at public place. In these circumstances, the complainant has violated the terms and conditions of the insurance policy and therefore, his claim has been rightly repudiated by OP keeping in view of the terms and conditions of the insurance policy and provisions of Motor Vehicles Act.

10.       Thus, the complainant has failed to make out a case of deficiency in service on the part of OPs.  Hence, this complaint is dismissed with no order as to costs. The parties are left to bear their own costs.

11.       Certified copy of this order be communicated to the parties, free of charge. After compliance file be consigned to record room.