Delhi HC Cuts Fatal-Accident Compensation by ₹9.96 Lakh, Assessing Steel Fabricator’s Income at Skilled-Worker Minimum Wage

In brief

The question

1. Whether the MACT correctly assessed the deceased’s age and monthly income for calculating loss of dependency.

The court held

The Court revised total compensation to ₹15,38,620, with interest at 9%, reducing the MACT award by ₹9,96,380.

It also directed

It directed the insurer to deposit any shortfall against the revised compensation, with accrued interest, within four weeks; the balance was to be released to the claimants as a lump sum within the following two weeks. The amount already deposited was to continue to be released in accordance with the MACT award.

Both appeals were disposed of, and any statutory deposit was to be refunded to the insurer subject to compliance with the deposit order.

01Facts

The appeals challenged the MACT’s award of ₹25,35,000, with 9% interest, to the legal representatives of Chand Lal Gupta, who died after a car struck his scooter on 19 May 2014.

pp. 1–3

The insurer sought a reduction, disputing the deceased’s age and the assessment of his income; the claimants sought enhancement, including future prospects and consortium.

pp. 1–3, 4

02Issues

i.1. Whether the MACT correctly assessed the deceased’s age and monthly income for calculating loss of dependency.

pp. 2–3

ii.2. Whether the claimants were entitled to future prospects and revised compensation for consortium and other conventional heads, and whether personal expenses should be deducted at one-third.

pp. 4–5

03Law Applied

The Court relied on Savita and Ors. v. National Insurance Company, 2026:DHC:3626, for the principle that, where documentary proof of income is lacking, a tribunal may consider testimony and other documents and use an appropriate minimum-wage benchmark; income assessment in such cases necessarily involves approximation rather than exactitude.

p. 3

It also applied National Insurance Co. Ltd. v. Pranay Sethi, (2017) 16 SCC 680, to adjust future prospects and conventional heads of compensation in accordance with the governing principles.

p. 4

The Court treated one-third as the appropriate deduction for personal expenses on the facts of this case.

p. 4

04Reasoning

The ration card and life-insurance policy recorded the deceased’s birth year or date as 1965, supporting the MACT’s use of multiplier 13 rather than the insurer’s proposed age of 56.

p. 2

Although the claimants relied on the deceased’s fabrication business and supporting invoices and equipment receipts, the evidence did not establish his precise income; the Court therefore used the skilled-worker minimum wage of ₹10,374 per month.

pp. 3–4

It added 25% for future prospects, deducted one-third for personal expenses, and calculated loss of dependency at ₹13,48,620. It then allowed ₹1,60,000 for consortium, ₹15,000 for loss of estate, and ₹15,000 for funeral expenses, with no separate award for loss of love and affection.

pp. 4–5