Compensation enhanced by applying notified minimum wages while retaining 30% contributory negligence.

On the intervening night of 1/2 February 2022, Daduram Gond was riding a motorcycle with his brother-in-law when it collided with a truck allegedly parked negligently on the road without warning lights or indicators.

Daduram died at the spot.

His wife, father and mother filed a claim petition under the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988, claiming ₹36,00,000 as compensation and asserting that Daduram earned ₹15,000 per month as an agricultural labourer.

The Motor Accident Claims Tribunal held that Daduram had contributed 30% to the accident and assessed his monthly income at ₹7,800.

Applying a 40% addition for future prospects, a one-third deduction for personal expenses and a multiplier of 16, the Tribunal awarded ₹10,93,932 after deducting 30% for contributory negligence.

The claimants appealed under Section 173 of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988, seeking enhancement and challenging the finding of contributory negligence.

Whether the Tribunal erred in attributing 30% contributory negligence to the deceased and whether the entire liability should instead have been placed on the truck driver and other respondents?

Whether the deceased’s monthly income ought to have been assessed at ₹9,280 instead of ₹7,800?

Whether the compensation awarded under the conventional heads and the total compensation required enhancement?

The Court exercised appellate jurisdiction under Section 173 of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988 to examine the correctness of the compensation award.

The doctrine of contributory negligence requires apportionment of compensation where the claimant or deceased also failed to exercise reasonable care contributing to the accident; the Court relied on United India Insurance Co. Ltd. v. S. Baby Latha & Ors., 2020 SCC OnLine Mad 5103, in assessing the deceased’s share of negligence.

For computation of dependency compensation, the Court applied the principles in National Insurance Co. Ltd. v. Pranay Sethi, (2017) 16 SCC 680, regarding future prospects; Sarla Verma v. Delhi Transport Corporation, (2009) 6 SCC 121, regarding deductions for personal expenses and the multiplier; and Magma General Insurance Co. Ltd. v. Nanu Ram, (2018) 18 SCC 1308, regarding spousal and filial consortium.

The deceased’s income was assessed on the basis of the applicable Chhattisgarh minimum-wage notification for an unskilled labourer.

The Court declined to interfere with the finding of 30% contributory negligence.

Since the accident occurred at approximately 12:30 a.m., and the deceased was himself riding the motorcycle, he was also required to exercise due care and caution.

In the absence of direct eyewitness evidence—the claimants’ witnesses being hearsay witnesses—the Tribunal’s apportionment of negligence at 30:70 was supported by the surrounding circumstances and was neither perverse nor improper.

The Court, however, enhanced the deceased’s monthly income from ₹7,800 to ₹9,280 based on the applicable minimum wages for an unskilled labourer.

It upheld the addition of 40% for future prospects, the one-third deduction for personal expenses, and the multiplier of 16, considering the deceased’s age of 35 years and three dependants.

The dependency loss was therefore recalculated as ₹16,62,976.

The amounts awarded for spousal consortium, filial consortium, loss of estate and funeral expenses—₹44,000, ₹88,000, ₹16,500 and ₹16,500 respectively—were maintained.

The resulting gross compensation of ₹18,27,976 was reduced by 30% for contributory negligence, producing net compensation of ₹12,79,583.

The Court upheld the deceased’s 30% contributory negligence but enhanced the compensation from ₹10,93,932 to ₹12,79,583 on account of the revised monthly income.

The claimants were held entitled to an additional ₹1,85,651, carrying interest at 6% per annum from the date of filing of the claim application until realization.

All other conditions of the Tribunal’s award were left undisturbed.

The Registry was directed to communicate the modified award to the claimants in Hindi, with assistance from paralegal workers where necessary.