Accident relief: draft rules put onus on insurance firm

Following a ruling by the Supreme Court last week, the state government has come out with a draft rule putting the responsibility of compensating road accident victims on insurance companies.

Last week, the top court set aside a Karnataka High Court judgement after relying upon a previous verdict of 2017 wherein it was held that an insurance company cannot raise the issue of negligence to deny claims of compensation, made under the special provision, to the driver or his families for the death or injuries in a road accident.

The Transport Department has now called for objections to the draft rules that seek to implement the court’s directive.

“The objective is to ensure that compensation is not delayed to victims in a road accident. The draft rules are in accordance with the directives issued by the court. We will consider any objections,” Principal Secretary to Transport Department B Basavaraju said.

The court is set to hear the case again on August 28 before passing its judgement. “The rules will be subject to the court’s final judgement. But the department will take up initiatives to ensure that the objective is met,” he said.

The principal secretary said he will instruct officials at the regional transport offices (RTO) to create awareness among vehicle owners that insurance is a must. “We will also increase enforcement activities in the coming days to put a check on vehicles without insurance,” he said.

According to the draft rules, the insurance companies have to fulfil the claim and secure the amount from the vehicle owner later. However, in cases where there is no insurance for the vehicle, the responsibility falls on the vehicle owner and the state government.

Officials said they have sought clarity from the legal department to make sure the final notification will not have loopholes. “There are many issues involved. We will resolve them before issuing the final notification,” he said.