An unskilled worker’s income must reflect the minimum wages notified for the date of the accident.

The appellants, parents of the deceased Arjun Rathia, appealed under Section 173 of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988, seeking enhancement of compensation awarded for his death in a road accident on 16 December 2024.

The Claims Tribunal had awarded Rs. 14,15,480, assessing the deceased’s monthly income at Rs. 9,100 and awarding Rs. 40,000 consortium to each claimant. The appellants argued that the applicable minimum wage for unskilled labour was Rs. 10,428 per month and that the consortium award was inadequate.

Whether the Tribunal erred in assessing the deceased’s monthly income at Rs. 9,100 rather than the applicable minimum wage of Rs. 10,428

Whether the compensation awarded, including consortium, required enhancement

Section 173 of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988 provides for an appeal against a Claims Tribunal award.

In assessing compensation, the Court relied on National Insurance Co. v. Pranay Sethi, (2017) 16 SCC 680; Sarla Verma v. Delhi Transport Corporation, (2009) 6 SCC 121; and Magma General Insurance Co. Ltd. v. Nanu Ram @ Chuhru Ram, (2018) 18 SCC 130, applying the principles governing future prospects, personal-expense deductions, multiplier selection, and consortium.

The Court also used the Chhattisgarh Labour Commissioner’s minimum-wage notification to assess the income of an unskilled labourer at the time of the accident.

The Court found that the Tribunal had undervalued the deceased’s income and substituted the notified minimum wage of Rs. 10,428 per month.

It upheld the Tribunal’s application of 40% future prospects, a one-half deduction for personal expenses, and a multiplier of 17, having regard to the deceased’s age, self-employed status, and the number of claimants.

It increased consortium from Rs. 40,000 to Rs. 48,000 for each of the two claimants and recalculated the total compensation at Rs. 16,21,115.

The appellants were granted an additional Rs. 2,05,635, carrying interest at 6% per annum from the date of filing the claim application until realization; the remaining terms of the Tribunal’s award were left undisturbed.

The Registry was directed to communicate the enhanced amount to the claimants in Hindi.