PRESENT

        SMT. ASHA SHETTY           :   PRESIDENT

                        SMT.LAVANYA M. RAI       :   MEMBER

     Dated: 27.5.2013                   

The Opposite Party counsel filed memo stated that they are ready for settlement and undertakes to pay the actual medical bills produced by the Complainant to the Opposite Party.

The counsel appearing for the Complainant also present and stated that they are ready to settle the claim, provided the Opposite Party shall pay compensation for the delay and also the cost of the litigation expenses.

Heard, perused the entire records, wherein, the case is related to the medi-claim submitted by the Complainant before the Opposite Party insurance company.  However, after filing the above complaints, the Opposite Party insurance company offered the settlement and undertaken to pay the actual medical expenses through their counsel.  Since the Opposite Party Company expressed their settlement by admitting the actual medical expenses spent by the Complainant there is no question of proceeding further in the above cases.

Now the point for consideration is only with regard to the compensation and cost of the proceedings. No doubt, the Opposite Party insurance company shall be liable to indemnify the medical expenses spent by the insured under the policy, but the offer for settlement has come up after initiating the legal proceedings before this authority through their counsels. If at all the insurance company settled the claim at the initial stage the question of paying litigation expenses should not have been arisen.  But the Complainant in all three cases enagaged the services of the legal practitioner and he has to pay for the service availed by them. So that the Opposite Party insurance company is liable to pay litigation expenses to the Complainants in all the cases but the damages are declined in all the cases as the Opposite Party company offered to settled the case at this stage. 

    In view of the above valid reasons, we hereby direct the Opposite Party insurance company to pay Rs.2,000/- each towards the litigation expenses in all three complaints along with the actual medical expenses in  C.C.NO.71/2013 i.e. Rs.27,566/-, in CC.No.72/2013 i.e. Rs.11,970/- and in C.C.No.73/2013 i.e. Rs.17,901/- respectively.  The payment shall be made within 30 days from the date of this order.  With the above observation the complaints are closed. 

                                              PRESIDENT                  MEMBER