Karnataka HC Doubles Consortium Award To Rs 80,000 For Accident Victim’s Wife And Daughter

The claimants, the deceased’s wife and daughter, sought compensation for his death in a road accident on 18 November 2017.

The Motor Accident Claims Tribunal awarded ₹25,94,392, including ₹40,000 for consortium, with interest at 6% per annum.

The claimants appealed under Section 173(1) of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988, seeking enhancement.

They challenged the age adopted for the deceased, sought inclusion of agricultural income, and claimed consortium for both claimants.

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 applied the compensatory principles governing motor-accident awards, including assessment of dependency and conventional heads of compensation.

It held that consortium was payable to each claimant at ₹40,000 in this case.

The Court upheld the Tribunal’s reliance on the deceased’s Aadhaar card for his age, reasoning that the ages recorded in the inquest mahazar and post-mortem report were based on police documents and lacked proof of date of birth.

It declined to add agricultural income because the lands remained with the claimants after the deceased’s death and, as a full-time employee, he could not contribute his own services to generating that income.

However, it found that both claimants were entitled to consortium of ₹40,000 each, increasing that head from ₹40,000 to ₹80,000.

It otherwise left the Tribunal’s awards for funeral expenses and loss of estate undisturbed.

The claimants were awarded an additional ₹40,000, with interest at 6% per annum from the date of the petition until realization.

The insurer was directed to deposit the enhanced amount within six weeks, and the claimants were entitled to its release in equal shares.

Interest was excluded for the 1,531-day delay in filing the appeal.