Haryana

Ambala

CC/312/2012

PRITAM SINGH - Complainant(s)

Versus

RELIANCE GENERAL INSURANCE CO. LTD. - Opp.Party(s)

C.M, ATRI

09 Feb 2017

ORDER

BEFORE THE DISTRICT CONSUMER DISPUTES REDRESSAL FORUM AMBALA

                                                          Complaint case no.        : 312 of 2012

                                                          Date of Institution         : 28.09.2012

                                                          Date of decision            :  09.02.2017

          Pritam Singh S/o Harbans Singh, resident of Village Gorsian, P.O. Jansui,        Distt. Ambala.  

……. Complainant.

          Reliance General Insurance Co. ltd. Tower F, First Floor, DLF Building   Rajiv Gandhi Technology Park, Chandigarh.

 ….…. Respondents.

BEFORE:   SH. D.N. ARORA, PRESIDENT

                   SH. PUSHPENDER KUMAR, MEMBER                            

 

Present:       Sh. C.M. Atri, counsel for complainant.

                   Sh. Mohinder Bindal, counsel for Op.

ORDER:

                   In nutshell, brief facts of the present complaint is that the complainant is the owner of a car make Maruti Alto LXi bearing registration No. HR01-Z-5327 and said car was comprehensively insured with the Ambala branch office of the OP vide insurance Policy NO. 2007702311001888 valid from 02.12.2010 to 01.12.2011 and a premium of Rs. 5897/- was paid by the complainant to the OP as the insured’s declared value of the said car was assessed to the tune of                              Rs. 2,08,000/- and on 29.12.2010 at about 7.00 AM, the driver of the complainant namely Mangat Ram S/o Ram Sarup was going to refill patrol in the said car question bearing registration No. HR-01-Z-5327 by driving the said car form Naraingarh but when he reached near the turn of village Hussaini, it was drizzling. Further submitted that all of a sudden a stray cow appeared on the road and to save the said cow, the driver of the complainant applied immediate brakes but due to slippery conditions, the car went out of his control and turned turtle into the ditches by the side of the road. Due to the said accident the car in question was extensively damaged. Further submitted that on the same day, the driver of the complainant reported the matter to the police station Naraingarh within whose jurisdictions the place of the accident fall and DDR to this effect was registered by the police vide DDR No. 35 dated 29.12.2010 and the complainant also reported the loss to the OP whereupon a surveyor Sh. A.K. Chatwal, was deputed by the OP to assess the loss. Thereafter the complainant shifted the said car to the authorized workshop of Maruti vehicles namely M/s Guru Nanak Motors, Ambala City as directed by the OP and after inspection of the said workshop prepared  estimate As per Surveyor report, the claim of Rs. 2,07,500/- was approved out of which a sum of Rs. 87,500/- was to be paid by the OP in full and final settlement and the complainant was asked to sell out the salvage against Rs. 1,20,000/-, the value being assessed by a scrape dealer called by the said Surveyor. Further submitted that the surveyor obtained the consent of the complainant in this regard and assured the complainant that the payment of his claim will be released very shortly. As per settlement and on the instructions of the Surveyor, the complainant sold out the salvage for                   Rs. 1,20,000/- only and in the month of March, the complainant received a letter dated 11.02.2011 whereby the complainant was asked to explain about availing of no claim bonus wrongly on the bais of false declaration at the time of availing insurance policy in question. At this the complainant was stunned to read and he immediately approached the authorized person of the earlier insurer ICICI Lambard Insurance Company of the car in question. Than on inquiry, it was reveraled that the owner of the workshop from where the complainant had got his car serviced earlier had made the claim against the car of the complainant when the same was damaged while reversing. The complainant was not aware of this fact and the said workshop had raised the claim without the consent of the complainant. The complainant clarified all these facts to the OP and was assured that since there was no concealment or mis-representation by the complainant hence his claim will be released very shortly but the complainant received another letter dated 14.03.2011 whereby the legal claim of the complainant was repudiated on the false and fictitious grounds with the observation that the complainant has availed one claim during the period of his last insurance. Hence, the present complaint.

2.                Upon notice, Op appeared and filed written statement submitting that as a matter of fact the reported claim no 2101281902 of the complainant on receipt of the intimation about loss to vehicle in question in an accident alleged to have taken place on 29.12.2010 was duly entertained in due course and IRDA licensed and approved surveyor Mrs. A.K. Chatwal was immediately deputed on the same day to look into the matter and to assess the loss and submitted his report whereby he assessed the loss on net of salvage basis subject to terms and conditions of the insurance policy and approval of claim by the competent authority. Since, he came to notice that the complainant has availed no claim bonus wrongly by                             mis-representation at the time of getting the renewal of previous insurance policy of his car in question inspite of the fact that he had already availed one claim from his previous insurer i.e. ICICI Lombard General Insurance Co. Ltd. thus he violated the terms and condition of the insurance policy.

3                 To prove his version complainant tendered his affidavit as Annexure C-X along with documents as annexure C-1 to C-7 and close his evidence. On the other hand, counsel for the Ops has also tendered affidavit as Annexure R-X alongwith documents as Annexure R-1 to R-6 and close his evidence.

4.                Admittedly, vehicle was insured with Op  at the relevant time of accident i.e. 29.12.2010 and vehicle got total loss in an accident and surveyor Sh. A.K. Chatwal assessed the loss to the tune of Rs.2,07,000/-, out of which the complainant sold  the salvage to the tune of Rs.1,20,000/- with the consent of the surveyor and complainant had agreed to receive a sum of Rs.68,000/- as full and final settlement amount by giving consent letter as evident from Annexure R-6 which has been relief upon by the OP. Now only question arises whether claim of complainant can be repudiated only on the ground that he availed the No-claim Bonus from the OP by concealing the factum of taking the claim from the previous insurance company.  We have perused the covernote issued by Op as Annexure C-2 wherein in the column of Previous Insurance Particulars have been shown as ICICI Lombard and vide policy no.MAR10408408 expiry date as 01.12.2010 and in the said column of declaration which is reproduced as under:-

I/we declare the rate of NCB claimed by me/us is correct and that no claim has arisen in the expiry policy period(copy of the policy enclosed). I /we further undertake that if this declaration is found to be incorrect, all benefits under the policy in respect of Own Damage Section of the policy will stand forfeited. “

 5.               But there is no signature of complainant or his proposer on the above declaration. So, the same is not binding upon the complainant even then the OP was very much in  knowledge  about the previous policy and they could easily verify the facts that whether insured/complainant has taken any benefit of  the previous policy or not. OP can only deduct the amount of NCB benefit i.e. Rs.1137/- out of 68000/-. Hence, present complaint is partly allowed with costs and Op is directed to comply with the following direction within thirty days from receipt of copy of the order:-

(i)      To pay a sum of Rs.66863/- to the complainant  alongwith interest @ 9% per annum from the date of complainant till its realization.

(ii)     Also to pay a sum of Rs.3,000/- on account of mental harassment & agony alongwith cost of litigation.

                   Copies of the order be sent to the parties concerned, free of costs, as per rules.  File after due compliance be consigned to record room.

Announced on :  09.02.2017                                          Sd/-

                                                                             (D.N. ARORA)

                                                                                       President

 

                      Sd/-

     (PUSHPENDER KUMAR)

                                                                                       Member