BEFORE THE DISTRICT CONSUMER DISPUTES
REDRESSAL COMMISSION, JALANDHAR.
Complaint No.83 of 2018
Date of Instt. 27.02.2018
Date of Decision:29.07.2022
Mr. Kishore Kumar, aged 35 years son of Sh. Sadak Ram, resident of Village Hardo Thala, Tehsil Dasuya, District Hoshiarpur, Head Post Office Hoshiarpur, Punjab-146001.
..........Complainant
Versus
1. SBI General Insurance Company Ltd., 1st Floor, State Bank of India, above SBI Main Branch, Near Hotel Skylark, Civil Lines, Jalandhar-144001, Punjab, India through its Branch Manager.
2. SBI General Insurance Company Ltd., Office Natraj, 101, 201 & 301, Junction of Western Express, Highway & Andhari Kurla Road, Andheri (East), Mumbai-400069, through its General Manager.
….….. Opposite Parties
Complaint Under the Consumer Protection Act.
Before: Dr. Harveen Bhardwaj (President)
Smt. Jyotsna (Member)
Sh. Jaswant Singh Dhillon (Member)
Present: Sh. T. S. Dhaliwal, Adv. Counsel for the Complainant.
None for OPs No.1 & 2.
Order
Dr. Harveen Bhardwaj (President)
1. The instant complaint has been filed by the complainant, wherein it is alleged that the complainant has insured the vehicle bearing No.PB07-AS-1934 make and model Mahindra & Mahindra, Bolero-Maxi Truck Plus BSIII, PS, Year of manufacturing 2014 from the office of OP No.1 vide Policy No.0000000003874373, Policy Service Branch, Jalandhar for a period of 02.02.2016 to 01.02.2017. Due to unavoidable circumstances, the complainant met with an accident of said vehicle and an FIR No.22 dated 06.02.2016 under Section 279, 337, 338, 427 IPC, P. S. Maqsudan, Jalandhar has been registered and the said vehicle has been totally damaged due to an accident, this fact has been given to the office of OP No.1, but they did not inquiry about the matter and not pursuing in given insurance policy benefits to the complainant. Now the complainant took the alleged vehicle on Sapurdari from competent court of law and took the possession of said damage vehicle, this fact has also been told to the OP No.1 but did not take any necessary step for giving necessary benefits to the complainant. On the other hand earlier, the complainant has regularly making the payment of said policy day to day and time to time, to the office of OP No.1. Now the complainant has right to claim benefits of insurance of alleged vehicle. This act of not pursuing of a conveyance to the complainant and the complainant is harassing by the OP No.1. Moreover, the OP No.1 has not provided better services to the complainant. The complainant got served a legal notice upon the OPs dated 20.05.2017, whereby requested them to get clear compensation of the complainant within a period of 15 days, after a receipt of this notice and pursue in claim of alleged vehicle within a period of 15 days, which was received by the OPs, but after receiving the said notice, the OPs failed to get clear compensation of the complainant and the complainant waited till today, to get compensation from the OPs, hence the complainant has no other efficacious remedy available except to file the present complaint before this Commission and as such the present complaint filed with the prayer that the complaint of the complainant may kindly be accepted and OPs be directed to repair the vehicle as the amount was already spent by complainant for this. Further, OPs be directed to pay Rs.1,50,000/- as a compensation for causing mental tension and harassment to the complainant and Rs.11,000/- as litigation expenses.
2. Notice of the complaint was given to the OPs, who filed reply and contested the complaint by taking preliminary objections that the present complaint in any form is not maintainable before this Commission as no cause of action arose to the complainant within the territorial jurisdiction of this Commission. Further, no part of the alleged cause of action ever took place within the Territorial jurisdiction of this Commission and in the absence of any evidence to the contrary the complaint deserves to be dismissed as no cause of action has accrued to the complainant wholly or in part at Ludhiana to claim any relief before this Commission. Thus, the present complaint deserves an outright dismissal being barred under Section 11 of the Consumer Protection Act. It is further averred that the present complaint is not maintainable as the vehicle in question was being used for commercial purpose by the insured and nowhere in the complaint, it has been explained as to how the present complaint is maintainable on the ground before this Commission. The present complaint deserves to be dismissed on this sole ground. Thus, the complainant is not a consumer within the meaning of the Consumer Protection Act and is thus not entitled to any relief from this Commission. The vehicle in question was being used for commercial purpose and as such, the present complaint deserves to be dismissed. It is further averred that the present complaint is frivolous and not tenable at law and hence deserves to be dismissed with costs. The terms of the contract of insurance have to be strictly construed and as per which the present claim of the complainant deserves a dismissal being outside the scope of terms of the policy. The complainant is trying to mislead this Commission by twisting the true facts and for giving end to its dishonest intentions of extorting illegal money under the beneficial legislation meant for innocent consumer. The sole motive of this complaint is to extort illegal and unjust money from the answering OP neither payable nor due to the complainant. On merits, the factum with regard to insurance of the vehicle of the complainant, by the OP under commercial goods carrying vehicle is admitted, but the other allegations as made in the complaint are categorically denied and lastly submitted that the complaint of the complainant is without merits, the same may be dismissed.
3. In order to prove his case, the complainant himself tendered into evidence his duly sworn affidavit Ex.CA alongwith documents Ex.C-1 to Ex.C-6 and thereafter the evidence of the complainant was closed by order.
4. In order to rebut the evidence of the complainant, the counsel for the OPs No.1 and 2 tendered into evidence affidavit Ex.OPA alongwith some documents Ex.OP-1 to Ex.OP-3 and closed the evidence.
5. We have heard the arguments from learned counsel for the complainant only as no one has appeared on behalf of the OPs and have also gone through the case file very minutely.
6. The case of the complainant is that the complainant has insured his vehicle bearing No.PB07-AS-1934 make and model Mahindra & Mahindra Bolero Maxi Truck Plus from OP No.1 for a period from 02.02.2016 to 01.02.2017, which is evident from Ex.C-1. Thereafter, the vehicle of the complainant met with an accident and FIR was registered to this effect, copy of the FIR is Ex.C-2. Due to accident the vehicle was totally damaged and this fact has been intimated to the office of the OP No.1, but the OP No.1 did not inquire about the matter and did not give the benefits of the insurance policy to him. The complainant has regularly been making the payment of said policy day to day and time to time to the OP No.1. The complainant has got served a legal noticed dated 20.05.2017 upon the OPs, but all in vain. Request has been made to allow the complaint.
7. The OP has alleged in his written statement that the vehicle was insured by the OP for the period 02.02.2016 to 01.02.2017 under Commercial Goods carrying vehicle as detailed in the policy schedule. All the conditions under the policy were fully understood by the complainant before taking the policy and he had thoroughly read the policy wordings. Upon receipt of the claim by the complainant, the OP had duly registered the same vide claim no.245101 and assigned the matter to M/s IAR Insurance Surveyors and Loss Assessors Pvt. Ltd. for conducting the spot survey to assess the loss to the vehicle and thereafter OP submitted its spot survey report dated 17.03.2016, which is evident from Ex.R-2. As per survey report, the vehicle was shifted at police station prior to spot survey and insured did not provide any documents at the time of spot survey. The OP demanded some documents from the complainant vide its letter dated 22.12.2016, which is evident from Ex.R-3, but the complainant failed to submit these documents and the insurance company closed the claim of the complainant as ‘No Claim’, vide its letter dated 30.12.2016, copy of the same is Ex.R-4. The OP has referred the spot surveyor report Ex.R-2 in which it has been mentioned under the head Cause of Loss that ‘insured representative who was available at spot survey was not aware about the cause of loss, TP Loss, Any injury, FIR & Date of Accident, We also tried to get this information telephonically but provided number 9914643876 was being not picked by insured/insured representative, So all details to be checked at the time of final survey’. The Claim Closure Letter Annexure R-4 shows that non-submission of documents from complainant’s end and as such, are constrained to conclude that the complainant are no longer interest in the claim lodged and the claim was closed as ‘no claim. In such circumstances, the complainant is directed to produce the documents, which are required for assessment of the loss and settling/deciding about the claim, to the OPs within 15 days from the date of receipt of the copy of the order and then the OPs will settle the claim of the complainant on the basis of these documents within 15 days from the date of receipt of the documents, failing which the OPs will be liable to pay compensation of Rs.20,000/- to the complainant. It is further ordered that if the complainant is not satisfied with the settlement of the claim made by the OPs, then he is at liberty to file a fresh complaint. Original documents submitted alongwith the complaint be returned to the complainant for onward submission of the same to OPs for the settlement of the claim. Thus, this complaint is disposed of. This complaint could not be decided within stipulated time frame due to rush of work.
8. Copies of the order be supplied to the parties free of cost, as per Rules. File be indexed and consigned to the record room.
Dated Jaswant Singh Dhillon Jyotsna Dr. Harveen Bhardwaj
29.07.2022 Member Member President
