The Sikkim High Court has turned the Motor Accident Claim Tribunal order and directed the United India Insurance Company Limited to pay a compensation of Rs 21.89 lakh to the parents of a laborer killed in a road accident.
Justice Bhaskar Raj Pradhan said that the deceased vehicle was not only a passenger, but a worker who was preserved under the insurance policy. The court also clarified that additional premium was paid by the insurance company for worker liability, so the insurance coverage also applies to the deceased.
The appeal was filed by the parents of the deceased under Section 166 of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988. He challenged the MACT decision in which the claim of compensation was rejected, saying that the deceased had only taken the lift in the vehicle and he did not come under the purview of the insurance policy.
The accident occurred on April 20, 2023 when the deceased was riding in a vehicle going from Rorathang towards East Sikkim. The High Court found that the deceased was appointed to take five sacks of sand from the vehicle as a daily wage earner. The vehicle owner said that the deceased used to help in doing small work and had boarded the vehicle to remove the sand to repair the drain of his house. Justice Pradhan said that it is enough to prove that the deceased was a ‘worker’.
The court said that under the Employees Compensation Act, the definition of ‘workers’ also includes assistant, cleaner and other people engaged in vehicle related work. This argument of the insurance company was rejected by the High Court that the deceased was a resident of the village’s village and was doing ‘free ride’ in the vehicle. The insurance company claimed this based on an investigation report.
The court also said that the accident occurred due to negligence and high speed of the driver. This led to the vehicle owner indirectly responsible. Describing the compensation amount of Rs 21.89 lakh as ‘appropriate compensation’, Justice Pradhan said that 9 percent annual interest will also be payable from the date of filing a claim on it.