Jharkhand

Bokaro

CC/146/2019

Anju Devi - Complainant(s)

Versus

The Divisional Manager, The New India Assurance Co. Ltd. - Opp.Party(s)

Md. Attullah Ansari

25 Feb 2023

ORDER

District Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission, Bokaro

Date of Filing-18-09-2019

Date of final hearing-25-02-2023

 Date of Order-25-02-2023

Case No. 146/2019

Anju Devi W/o Mohanlal Suman

R/o P.O.- Telo, P.S. Nawadih, Chandrapura Bokaro, 828403

Vs.

The Devisional Manager, The New India Assurance Co. Ltd.

Bokaro Divisional Office 540400, C-27,

City Centre, Sector-4, 1^st Floor, Bokaro Steel City, 827004

 

Present:-

                             Shri Jai Prakash Narayan Pandey, President

                  Smt. Baby Kumari, Member

 

PER- J.P.N Pandey, President

-Judgment-

1. Complainant has filed this case with prayer to direct the O.P. to pay Rs. 1,22,100/-  with interest @ 18% on account of damage of the boundary wall and to pay Rs. 75,000/- for physical and mental harassment and Rs. 10,000/- as legal expense.
2. Case of the complainant is that he is one of the partner/ proprietor of M/s Telo Indane Gramin Vitrak who got insured the infrastructure vide policy No. 54040048131300000002 valid from 11.03.2014 to 10.03.2015 issued by the O.P. New India Assurance Co. Ltd. but due to heavy rain on 19.06.2014 in the night boundary wall of that very agency fell down for which information to the P.S. was given on 20.06.2014 and information to the O.P. was given on 23.06.2014 for needful action. Further case is that insurance co. appointed surveyor who verbally directed the complainant to submit estimate report of engineer regarding the construction of broken boundary wall. Accordingly estimate for Rs. 1,22,100/- with report was submitted and on repeated requests claim was not settled hence legal notice was issued which was replied by denial of the claim, hence this case has been filed with above mentioned prayer.
3. As per O.P. there is three days delay in reporting the occurrence to the O.P. and inspite of request complainant has not provided details of property and loss occurred and other documents hence claim has been refused.
4. Point for consideration is that whether complainant is entitled to get relief as claimed or not?
5. Insurance Policy under consideration is not in dispute. The fact related to damage of the boundary wall due to heavy rain is also not in dispute  and submission of claim form as well as report to the O.P. regarding damage  of boundary wall is also not in dispute. Only dispute is in respect to the fact that there was three days delay in giving report by the complainant to the O.P. and mere on this ground claim has been refused.
6. To prove its case complainant has filed photo copy of letter dt. 11.07.2019 addressed to O.P. (Annexure-1), photo copy of letter dt. 23.06.2014 addressed to O.P. (Annexure-2), photo copy of letter dt. 20.06.2014 addressed to P.S. concerned (Annexure-3), photo copy of estimate paper  dt. 26.06.2014 (Annexure-4) , photo copy of policy paper (Annexure-5), photo copy of legal notice dt. 10.08.2019 addressed to O.P. issued by complainant (annexure-6) and photo copy of reply of legal notice dt. 10.08.2019 addressed to the complainant (annexure-7). As oral evidence no any witness has been examined by the complainant.
7. On behalf of O.P. the New India Assurance Co. Ltd. one witness has been examined who has admitted at para 3 of his deposition regarding facts related to this case and its intimation to the O.P. During cross-examination at para 12 he admits that complainant has submitted estimate of Rs. 1,22,107/- but he has self stated that mere on the basis of estimate payment cannot be made. Further he has stated that insurance co. deputes surveyor and on the report of his surveyor it proceeds to make payment. Copy of survey report of the surveyor appointed by the O.P. has been brought on record by the O.P. and according to report of the surveyor of the O.P. there is assessed loss of Rs. 61,879/- but since insured has not reconstructed the damaged boundary wall and also has not submitted repairing bill till date hence claim is not tenable.
8. On careful perusal of all materials available on record it is very much clear from annexure-4 of the complaint petition that as per complainant there is estimated loss of Rs. 1,22,107/- to the complainant and as per surveyor of the O.P. there is loss of Rs. 61,879/- to the complainant. On comparison of both the survey reports it appears that in respect to damage and work as well as  materials both the reports are identical and there is no any difference in it except the rate and amount. However, as per complainant in respect to carriage of materials Rs. 10,113/- has to be paid by the party for transportation of materials of  repair work but the surveyor of the O.P. has not taken it into consideration. In this way if the survey report of the O.P. is taken into consideration as true and correct then there will loss of Rs. 61,879/- + Rs. 10,113/- ( the estimated transportation charge of the materials)  = Rs. 71,992/-. It appears from all the materials available on record that mere on hyper technical ground i.e. the delay of three days in reporting the occurrence to the O.P. his claim has been refused but it appears that refusal is not justified.
9. In light of above discussion we are of the opinion that there is deficiency in service by the O.P. hence above point is being decided in favour of the complainant.
10. Accordingly prayer of the complainant is being allowed in the following manner:-

O.P. New India Assurance Co. Ltd. is directed to pay Rs. 71,992/- to the complainant within 60 days from receipt/production of the copy of this order and also to pay Rs. 7000/- as compensation for various type of harassment and also to pay Rs. 3000/- as litigation cost within above mentioned period.

 

 

(J.P.N. Pandey)

                                                                                      President

                                                                                               

 

                                                                               (Baby Kumari)

                                                                                       Member