Jharkhand

Bokaro

CC/12/2021

Pankaj Kumar Barnwal - Complainant(s)

Versus

Reliance General Insurance Co. Ltd. - Opp.Party(s)

Sachin KUmar Barnwal

20 Apr 2023

ORDER

District Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission, Bokaro

Date of Filing-23-03-2021

Date of final hearing-20-04-2023

 Date of Order-20-04-2023

Case No. 12/2021

Pankaj Kumar Barnwal S/o Sri Kedar Prasad Modi,

R/o Village- Kodwatand, P.S.- Lalpania, District- Bokaro

Vs.

1. Reliance General Insurance Co. Ltd.

RGIGL, 3^rd Floor, Chandrakali Bhawan,

M-5, City Centre, Bokaro Steel City, Bokaro, 827004

2. Corporate Office- Reliance Centre South Wing,

4.  

Santacrut East Mumbai-400055

 

 Present:-

                             Shri Jai Prakash Narayan Pandey, President

Shri Bhawani Prasad Lal Das, Sr.Member

                  Smt. Baby Kumari, Member

PER- J.P.N Pandey, President

-:Order:-

1. Complainant’s case in short is that he is running a shop situated in Lalpania near Kadam Pair Chock and used to sell many articles like Puja Bhandar, Stationary etc. for his livelihood and said shop was insured with O.Ps. vide policy certificate no. 74439202911100034 valid from 20.02.2020 to 19.02.2021. Further case is that on 04.04.2020 during lockdown for Covid-19 there was occurrence of burning due to short circuit during which the articles of the shop for Rs. 1,20,000/- were burnt for which he gave intimation to the Lalpania P.S. vide SDE No. 14/2020 and applied for insurance claim which was not settled then notice was issued which was replied by the O.P. on 29.09.2020 that as per terms of the policy intimation was required to be given within 15 days after loss or damage or such further time as the company may allow in writing but there is delay in intimation hence claim has been repudiated. Hence this case has been filed with prayer to direct the O.Ps. to pay Rs. 1,20,000/- with interest @ 18% per year from Oct. 2020 and to pay Rs. 50,000/- compensation and Rs. 5000/- as litigation cost.
2. O.Ps. appeared and W.S. has been filed by them mentioning therein that there is prescribed time for giving information to O.P. within 15 days but information was given after 4 months which is violation of conditions of the policy. Further reply is that no intimation report of fire department regarding the accident has been given, no authentic bill of purchase of goods has been given nor the stock register has been furnished, no tax audit report or profit margin or past three years balance sheet or income tax return or papers related to sales, stock register, cash book and ledger of the current year or previous year has been filed. It is admitted that shop was insured for Rs. 2,00,000/- for fire for the relevant period. Further reply is that complainant has not furnished the relevant information and claim has been repudiated due to late intimation hence it is prayed to dismiss the case.
3. Point for consideration is whether complainant is entitled to get relief as prayed ?
4. It is admitted fact that shop concerned was insured by the O.Ps. for Rs. 2,00,000/- only which was covering the damage or loss by fire also. Complainant has produced photo copy of insurance policy Annxure-1 & 2 , photo copy of repudiation letter Annexure-3 and photo copy of bills Annexure-4 regarding purchase of so many items, photo copy of SDE No. 14/2020 Annxure-5  and photograph of the shop Annexure-6.
5.  It is very much clear from the papers submitted by the complainant as well as reply of the O.P. that shop concerned is a small shop which was insured for Rs. 2,00,000/- only hence considering the usual practice of small shopkeepers of rural area we are of the view that demand of stock register, income tax return, cash book, ledger, balance sheet etc. will be treated as hyper technical approach in respect to such type of shops. Another aspect has to be taken into the notice by the Commission is that there was complete lockdown in the area from 23.03.2020  due to Covid-19 pandemic   which continued for several months and during it occurrence of burning was occurred on 04.04.2020. Therefore, it was impossible for the small shopkeeper of rural area to give intimation to the O.Ps. within 15 days of the occurrence. Hence we are of the view that delay in intimation by the complainant to the O.P. was due to circumstance beyond control of the complainant for which claim cannot be refused. Hence in our opinion repudiation of claim on the ground of delay in intimation about the occurrence is not justifiable rather claim was liable to be allowed to the some extent only because all receipts filed by the complainant regarding purchase of the items are not the pucca receipts rather some of the receipts or Kachcha receipts. Therefore, we are of the view that claim may be allowed on the basis of lump sum value i.e. Rs. 60,000/-only. Accordingly this point is being decided in favour of the complainant.
6. In light of above discussion prayer of the complainant is being partly allowed in the following manner:-

O.P. Reliance General Insurance Co. Ltd. is directed to pay Rs. 60,000/- only to the complainant within 60 days from receipt/production of copy of this order, failing which he shall pay interest on that very amount @ 10% per annum from 23.03.2021 (i.e. the date on which case has been filed). Further O.P. is directed to pay Rs. 7000/- as compensation and Rs. 5000/- as litigation cost to the complainant within above mentioned period.

 

 

(J.P.N. Pandey)

                                                                                      President

 

 

(B.P.L Das)

   Sr. Member

                                                                            

                  

                                                                               (Baby Kumari)

                                                                                       Member