Compensation as per law: Air India lawyers

 
Though 21 families out of 158 had met Advocate H D Nanavati as on Tuesday, settlement was not made in nine cases for various reasons.

Advocate H D Nanavati of Mulla and Mulla clarified that the compensation payable is a statutory liability of the air carrier under the Carriage by Air (CA) Act 1972, which incorporates the Montreal Convention.

“There appears to be some misunderstanding on the part of the claimants with regard to the manner in which compensation is being paid to the family members of the victims of Mangalore aircrash,”Nanavai said. Under the Montreal Convention, the amount of compensation is to be worked out in each case separately on ‘proof of loss basis’, which is an exercise essentially to place the family members in the same position as they would have been in had the deceased not died in the accident, he explained.

The Montreal Convention refers to a figure of about Rs 70 lakh. However, it neither represents a minimum liability, nor does it represent a figure to be paid to all family members equally without distinction, Nanavati said adding that compensation will be paid to all families according to rules under the CA Act.