Karnataka HC Sends Two Crash Victims’ Future-Income Awards Back, Gives Insurer Chance To Prove Post-Accident Employment

On 11 June 2016, Suhail Pasha was riding a motorcycle with Saleem Pasha as pillion when a car allegedly driven rashly and negligently crossed to the wrong side and collided with the motorcycle

They filed separate motor accident claims. The Tribunal awarded ₹10,11,917 to Suhail and ₹7,24,125 to Saleem

The insurer appealed, disputing the awards for loss of future income. In Suhail’s claim, it relied on a resignation letter dated 2 June 2017, accepted with effect from 12 July 2017; in Saleem’s claim, it argued that no termination letter had been produced

The claimants maintained that they were not working and that the Tribunal’s awards were proper

Whether the awards for loss of future income should stand when the claimants’ employment and earnings after the accident were disputed

Whether the matters should be remanded to allow the insurer to produce evidence regarding the claimants’ post-accident employment

The appeals were brought under Section 173(1) of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988, which provides for appeals to the High Court from awards of a Claims Tribunal.

It proceeded on the principle that assessment of loss of future income should be based on evidence concerning the claimants’ employment and earnings; where that evidence is disputed or incomplete, the Tribunal may reconsider the issue after giving the parties an opportunity to present relevant material.

The Court found that the insurer’s challenge raised an unresolved factual question: whether either claimant continued working after the accident.

The resignation evidence relied on in Suhail’s case and the absence of a termination letter in Saleem’s case required consideration by the Tribunal, rather than resolution on the existing record.

The Court therefore set aside the awards only insofar as they concerned loss of future income and directed the Tribunal to receive evidence from the insurer about the claimants’ employment after the accident. If the insurer produced no such evidence, the Tribunal was to consider monthly incomes of ₹22,500 for Suhail and ₹20,000 for Saleem, based on their salary certificates.

The Tribunal was directed to dispose of the matters within three months of receiving the order, with the parties to appear on 23 November 2026; the deposited amount was to be transferred to the Tribunal and kept in a nationalised bank pending disposal.