A claimant without permanent disability is not entitled to compensation for loss of future earning capacity.

The claimant, then a first-year B.Com. student, sustained a degloving injury to the plantar aspect of her left foot in a road accident involving a TATA 407 goods vehicle on 16 April 2022.

She received treatment at hospitals in Kanakapura and Bengaluru, including an inpatient stay of about 15 days.

The Tribunal awarded her ₹3,00,186 under the heads of pain and suffering, medical expenses, attendant and nourishment charges, and loss of amenities.

Dissatisfied, she appealed under Section 173(1) of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988, seeking enhancement, including compensation for loss of future earning capacity and marriage prospects.

1. Whether the claimant was entitled to enhancement of compensation, including compensation for loss of future earning capacity and marriage prospects

2. Whether the claimant had established a loss of academic year or permanent disability warranting compensation under the claimed heads

The appeal was brought under Section 173(1) of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988, which provides for an appeal against an award of a Claims Tribunal.

The Court assessed the compensation by reference to the evidence concerning the claimant’s injuries, treatment, and disability. It cited no precedent or separate statutory test for determining the specific heads of compensation in its reasoning.

The Court found no basis to compensate the claimant for loss of an academic year: although she was in her first year of B.Com. at the time of the accident, she was studying in her second year when she gave evidence.

It upheld the Tribunal’s refusal to award compensation for loss of future earning capacity because the doctor’s evidence did not establish permanent physical disability.

However, it considered that no amount had been awarded for marriage prospects and that the attendant-charge award was low; it therefore granted additional global compensation of ₹1,00,000.

The insurer was directed to deposit the compensation and accrued interest before the Tribunal within eight weeks of receiving the certified judgment; disbursement and deposit were to follow the Tribunal’s order.