Income of minor deceased to be assessed based on prevalent minimum wages for skilled workers.

On August 3, 2011, a school bus (GJ-11-W-387) driven by respondent No. 1 overturned and fell into a pit due to rash and negligent driving.

The accident resulted in the death of a seven-year-old minor.

The Motor Accident Claims Tribunal (MACT), Junagadh, awarded Rs. 2,57,000/- with 9% interest, assessing the deceased’s notional income at Rs. 10,000/- per annum.

Disappointed with the quantum of compensation, the appellants (parents) filed this appeal seeking enhancement.

1. Whether the Tribunal erred in assessing the notional income and compensation for a minor deceased victim.

2. Whether the claimants are entitled to enhanced compensation under conventional heads such as future prospects, loss of estate, and consortium.

The court applied the principles of "just compensation" under the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988.

It relied on the landmark judgment of National Insurance Company Ltd. v. Pranay Sethi (2017) regarding the addition of 40% for future prospects and standardized amounts for conventional heads (funeral expenses and loss of estate).

It also applied Magma General Insurance Co. Ltd. v. Nanu Ram @ Chuhru Ram (2018) to award parental consortium to both parents.

For income assessment in the absence of evidence for a minor, the court utilized the Minimum Wages notified by the Government of Gujarat for skilled workers at the time of the accident.

The court found the Tribunal’s assessment of Rs. 10,000/- per annum as notional income to be overly low.

Applying the minimum wage for skilled workers prevalent in August 2011 (Rs. 4,660/-, rounded to Rs. 5,000/- per month), the court recalculated the dependency.

As the deceased was a minor/bachelor, 50% was deducted for personal expenses, and 40% was added for future prospects, resulting in a monthly dependency of Rs. 3,500/-.

Using a multiplier of 15, the total loss of dependency was calculated at Rs. 6,30,000/-.

Furthermore, following Pranay Sethi, the court increased the awards for Loss of Estate and Funeral Expenses to Rs. 18,150/- each.

Under Magma General, the court awarded Rs. 48,400/- to each parent for Loss of Consortium (totaling Rs. 96,800/-), specifically noting that no separate amount is required for "love and affection".

The court answered that the notional income must align with minimum wage standards and future prospects must be included.

The total compensation was enhanced from Rs. 2,57,000/- to Rs. 7,63,100/-, resulting in an additional award of Rs. 5,06,100/-.

The Insurance Company (Respondent No. 2) was directed to deposit the additional amount with 9% interest per annum from the date of the claim petition within six weeks.